5 to Watch: Bulls' Butler Takes on Mirotic in Men's Basketball Semis
•
Getty Images
As the Rio Games inch closer to an end, there will be no shortage of excitement.
Illinois Olympians Compete at the Rio Games
The fourteenth day of the Summer Games will see pivotal moments as athletes like Usain Bolt go for more gold and Jimmy Butler competes against his teammate in Team USA's quest for victory.
Here are five things to watch Friday in Rio:
Valery Sharifulin/TASS
Jamaica's Usain Bolt prepares to compete in a men's 200m semifinal of the Athletic, Track and Field events at the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games, at the Olympic Stadium.
Usain Bolt crossed the finish line in first — he’s never done otherwise at the Olympics.
He anchored the winning 4x100 relay team from Jamaica and said this is his last Games, leaving him a perfect nine for nine on sports’ biggest stage.
Getty Images
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - AUGUST 14: Jimmy Butler #4 of United States and teammate DeAndre Jordan #6 look on during a Men's Preliminary Round Group A game between the United States and France on Day 9 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Carioca Arena 1 on August 14, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
2. Men's Basketball: US Beats Spain, Heads to Gold Medal Game
The U.S. Olympic men's basketball team is still a little better than Spain.
One more win and the Americans are again the best in the world.
Klay Thompson scored 22 points for the Americans, who will play Australia or Serbia on Sunday for their third consecutive Olympic title.
How to watch: Watch Team USA online or on NBC Sports Network at 1:30 p.m. CT
Getty Images
Claressa Shields of the United States celebrates defeating Nadezda Torlopova of Russia during the Women's Middle (75kg) Boxing final bout on Day 13 of the London 2012 Olympic Games at ExCeL on Aug. 9, 2012, in London, England.
3. Boxer Claressa Shields Wins Semifinal to Reach Gold Medal Match
Claressa Shields has become a force to be reckoned with after making history at the 2012 London Olympics, becoming the first American woman to win gold in the sport.
Now 21, Shields is more confident than ever as she attempts to defend her Olympic championship.
Shields beat Russia's Yaroslava Yakushina in the women's middleweight quarterfinals on Wednesday with a 3-0 score. And on Friday, the American boxer dominated her semifinal match against Kazakhstan’s Dariga Shakimova to advance to the gold medal round.
How to watch: Catch coverage of Shields' match online in the middleweight semifinals. Boxing coverage began at 12 p.m. CT. Shields competed at 1:30 p.m. CT.
Getty Images
4. Illinois Athletes Compete for Their First Medals in Rio
Daniel Dennis
Ingleside native Daniel Dennis made his Olympic debut Friday, but failed to make it to the medal matches after falling 1--0 to Bulgarian Vladimir Dubov.
The two-time state runner-up at Grant Community High School in Fox Lake and national runner-up at the University of Iowa made headlines after winning the 2016 Olympic trials in a remarkable comeback.
Following the heartbreak of losing the NCAA Championships, and watching his father battle terminal brain cancer, Dennis had earlier decided to leave the sport to which he had given so much over the years.
In 2013, the wrestler headed west with nothing but his pickup truck and a motorcycle, spending the next two years living a minimalistic life — no TV, no Internet and no wrestling.
But when he returned, he returned with power.
How to watch: Dennis competed in the Men’s 57kg Freestyle events Friday. The competition began at 8a.m. CT with the final event at 4:30 p.m. CT. Watch live coverage online.
Sandi Morris
Downers Grove native Sandi Morris competed for her chance at a medal in the women’s pole vault Friday and will take home silver.
Morris, who qualified for the final event during Tuesday’s qualifier with a score of 4.55, broke the collegiate vault record and was the NCAA champion for indoor pole vault. She also set school records for both indoor and outdoor.
How to watch: Morris will compete at 6:30 p.m. CT. Watch it live here.
Laura Zeng
Libertyville’s Laura Zeng, one of the iconic rhythmic gymnasts in Rio from the North Shore Gymnastics Center, made her first appearance in the Summer Games Friday but narrowly missed her chance at qualifying for the final event.
Zeng competed in the women's all-around individual qualification round but came in 11th place with a score of 69.841. Only the top 10 in the qualification round move on to the final.
Kseniya Moustafaeva of France took the final spot with a score of 69.982.
How to watch: Zeng made her debut in Rio in the Individual All-Around qualification rounds Friday beginning at 8:20 a.m. Watch full coverage online.
Getty Images
VALKENSWAARD, NETHERLANDS - AUGUST 13: Kent Farrington of the USA riding Willow competes in the Class 02 CSI5* 1.50/1.55m Against the Clock with Jump-Off during the Longines Global Champions Tour held at Stal Tops on August 13, 2015 in Valkenswaard, Netherlands. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)
5. Local Athletes Look to Continue Their Medal Streaks
Chicago rider and Olympic show jumper Kent Farrington helped lift Team USA to a silver medal in the team jumping final Wednesday, but he was unable to take home an individual medal in the jumping final Friday.
Farrington finished Friday's event in fifth place. Great Britain's Nick Skelton won gold, followed by Peder Fredricson of Sweden and Canada's Eric Lamaze.
How to watch: Individual jumping final rounds began at 8 a.m. CT. Watch it here.
Indiana divers David Boudia and Steele Johnson have already secured the silver medal in the men’s 10-meter synchro event earlier in Rio, but on Saturday, they’ll be competing for their chance at individual gold.
The duo that turned in a strong performance to secure a medal in the synchro both qualified Friday for Saturday's semifinal in the individual men's 10m platform event.
Boudia finished Friday with a score of 496.55, putting him in fourth. Johnson barely moved on the semifinal, taking the final spot in the qualification round at 18th place.
Both will compete in the Saturday morning with hopes of qualifying for the final event that afternoon.
1.Usain Bolt Goes for Even More Gold
The Fastest Man Alive will compete in the 4x100 meter final late Friday. Usain Bolt has already electrified the Rio crowd by winning the 100 meter dash.
How to watch: See Bolt race live online or during NBC’s primetime broadcast. Coverage of track and field events begins at 7:10 p.m. ET. Bolt’s final Rio race is scheduled for 8:35 p.m. CT
2.Bulls’ Butler, Mirotic Set to Battle in Olympic Semi-Final Game
After some early scares, the U.S team rebounded Wednesday in a rout over Argentina, 105-78, to advance to the semifinals against Spain.
While the game is significant because of the medal implications, the contest also holds special interest for Chicago Bulls fans, as Jimmy Butler and the American side will be battling current Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic and former Bull Pau Gasol, who both represent Spain in the tournament.
How to watch: Watch Team USA live online or on NBC Sports Network at 1:30 p.m. CT
3.Boxer Claressa Shields in the Women’s Middleweight Semifinals
Claressa Shields has become a force to be reckoned with after making history at the 2012 London Olympics, becoming the first American woman to win gold in the sport.
Now 21, Shields is more confident than ever as she attempts to defend her Olympic championship.
Shields beat Russia's Yaroslava Yakushina in the women's middleweight quarterfinals on Wednesday with a 3-0 score.
She’ll face Dariga Shakimova of Kazakhstan in semifinals on Friday.
How to watch: Catch Shields live online in the middleweight semifinals. Boxing coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET. Shields is scheduled to compete at 1:30 p.m. CT.
4.Locals Going for 1st Medal: Daniel Dennis, Morolake Akinosun/Sandi Morris, Laura Zeng
Daniel Dennis
Ingleside native Daniel Dennis hasn’t exactly had the most conventional road to Olympic status.
The two-time state runner-up at Grant Community High School in Fox Lake and national runner-up at the University of Iowa was always a powerful athlete, but not an individual champion.
Following the heartbreak of losing the NCAA Championships, and watching his father battle terminal brain cancer, Dennis decided to leave the sport to which he had given so much over the years.
In 2013, the wrestler headed west with nothing but his pickup truck and a motorcycle, spending the next two years living a minimalistic life — no TV, no Internet and no wrestling.
But when he returned, he returned with power.
And it was that power that brought him to victory at the Olympic trials earlier this year and made him a seriously gold medal contender in the 125-pound weight class.
How to watch: Dennis will compete in the Men’s 57kg Freestyle events Friday, where he hopes to bring home his first-ever Olympic medal. The competition begins at 8a.m. CT with the final event at 4:30 p.m. CT.
Morolake Akinosun
The US 4x100 relay team made the best of its second chance, qualifying easily Thursday night in a solo re-run of the heat in which Allyson Felix was jostled and lost control of the baton.
Race officials upheld an American protest and the US made it around the track safely and quickly — their time of 41.77 seconds wound up best among the qualifiers.
On that team is Aurora’s Morolake Akinosun, who was once voted as the “most outstanding newcomer in athletics” at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Akinosun is scored in four events during consecutive seasons at NCAA Outdoor Championships, making her the second woman in history to achieve this feat.
How to watch: Akinosun and the rest of her US team will compete in the relay final at 8:15 p.m. CT.
Sandi Morris
Downers Grove native Sandi Morris will compete for her chance at a medal in the women’s pole vault Friday.
Morris, who qualified for the final event during Tuesday’s qualifier with a score of 4.55, broke the collegiate vault record and was the NCAA champion for indoor pole vault. She also set school records for both indoor and outdoor.
How to watch: Morris will compete at 6:30 p.m. CT. Watch it live here.
Laura Zeng
Libertyville’s Laura Zeng, one of the iconic rhythmic gymnasts in Rio from the North Shore Gymnastics Center, will make her first appearance in the Summer Games Friday.
Zeng was the first U.S. rhythmic gymnast to win World Cup medals and has made history in the sport over the last few years.
In 2015, she completely swept the individual rhythmic gymnastics competition at the Pan American Games, winning gold in the all-around hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon finals.
How to watch: She will make her debut in Rio in the Individual All-Around qualification rounds Friday beginning at 8:20 a.m.
5.Locals Going for Repeats: Kent Farrington/ David Boudia, Steele Johnson
Chicago rider and Olympic show jumper Kent Farrington helped lift Team USA to a silver medal in the team jumping final Wednesday, but on Friday he’ll have a shot at an individual medal.
Farrington finished the third individual jumping qualifier tied for second with a score of 1. The best possible score a jumper can get is a 0.
How to watch: Farrington is set to compete in the individual final rounds beginning at 8 a.m. CT. Watch it live here.
Indiana divers David Boudia and Steele Johnson have already secured the silver medal in the men’s 10-meter synchro event earlier in Rio, but on Friday, they’ll be competing for their chance at individual gold.
The duo turned in a strong performance with a score of 457.11 to secure a medal in the synchro.
How to watch: Both divers will hit the platform for the preliminary round beginning at 2 p.m. CT. Watch it live.
