2012 Olympic Games: Top American Teams to Watch at Summer Games

With the Olympics underway, it's time to take a look at some of the top American teams to watch at this year's Summer Games.

When it comes to the Olympics, a lot of sports take place over a relatively small amount of time.  A lot of them are individual sports with athletes representing their countries.  There are a good amount of group events left, but with events like team gymnastics over, what groups are left to watch?

There are several sports still left, with dominant American teams that should be the focus of your Olympic viewing as we move forward in the Summer Games.

By now it's no surprise, for example, how dominant the men's basketball team is.  With all the hype surrounding them, even the comparison to the 1992 Dream Team, will they be able to deliver or end up falling short?

They are not the only team with a huge amount of pressure on them.  Other teams are trying to retain their championship status as they go for another gold medal.

With pressure like that on your shoulders, these teams need to be watched before the Olympics come to an end.

If you plan on watching the rest of the Olympic Games through this week, and the weeks to come, make sure you check out these top American teams.

Women's Beach Volleyball

Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor are the two main athletes when it comes to women’s beach volleyball.

Walsh and May-Treanor are trying to go for a third consecutive beach volleyball gold medal.  They are off to a solid start, after beating Australians Tasmin Hinchley and Natalie Cook Saturday night and then Kristyna Kolocova and Marketa Slukova of the Czech Republic in their second match.

Against the Australians, they were able to win the first set 21-18 but had to come back from a four-point deficit in order to pull off the victory.

This sport is a big television ratings draw, so the US women's beach volleyball team has had to deal with their games being held at night, in temperatures that drop to 50 degrees by the time the matches are over.

The question remains, though, if these two will be able to pull off winning another gold medal.

Walsh has had two children since the Beijing Games, and May-Treanor had ruptured her Achilles tendon while practicing for Dancing with the Stars.

Natalie Cook, whom Walsh and May-Treanor went up against on Saturday, had this to say about the duo over at ESPN.com:

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They definitely have weaknesses they didn't have before. We exploited them for short periods but we couldn't for the whole time.

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Will Walsh and May-Treanor be able to overcome the colder weather conditions and prove they still have what it takes to win the gold?  Only time will tell, which is why you should be paying attention to this duo.

Men's Volleyball

The U.S. men's volleyball team is the current defending champions of the summer Olympics.  They also managed a silver medal finish in the FIVB World League tournament more recently.

Still, the US team is not considered a favorite as we head into the Summer Games.

Four years ago, the U.S. men's volleyball team went undefeated in Beijing and beat Brazil in the finals.  Clearly, this team has what it takes to win another gold medal.

More recently, they swept Serbia on Sunday.  Matt Anderson had 18 points, and captain Clay Stanley added another 13 points.  Serbia themselves are a formidable team.  They won the gold in 2000 and placed fifth in 2008.

Matt Anderson was quoted over at ESPN.com as saying:

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It was a good match. We fought hard and won in three straight, which is pretty much exactly what our game plan was to do. We wanted to serve tough and put a lot of pressure on them, and I think we executed that pretty well.

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The U.S. men’s volleyball team would go on to defeat Germany in three sets on Tuesday, also.  Anderson had 15 points in that game, while Stanley scored 16 points.

Currently, the U.S. is ranked fifth in the world by volleyball's governing body.  They are in a tough group in London, which consists of Brazil, Russia, Serbia, Germany and Tunisia.

While they may have their work cut out for them, early dominance shows that the men's volleyball team will be one to watch.

They were able to pull off a huge gold-medal win last time, and sweeping a solid competitor like Serbia and being able to handle Germany in three sets proves that the U.S. men's team is going to be one group to watch.

Women's Soccer

One of the top American teams to watch at the Summer Olympics is the women's soccer team.  

The U.S. women’s team beat France 4-2, Columbia 3-0 and North Korea 1-0.  This is the first time that the women’s U.S. team has managed to sweep every team in their group in the Olympics.

Will the defending Olympic champions be able to keep the gold in the U.S.?  Only time will tell, but with stars like Abby Wambach, who played a key role in their win over North Korea, and Hope Solo, it's hard to see how the U.S. team will struggle.

Add the fact that they are statistically ranked number one in the world, and it's clear that women's soccer is one of America's strongest sports in the Olympics.

The U.S. is stacked when it comes to players.  Not only are names like Abby Wambach, Hope Solo and Alex Morgan ones that you recognize right away because of their skill, there are other stars emerging on the women's team as well.

Megan Rapinoe, for example, has become more consistent and comfortable with the ball.  Rapinoe has turned out to be a midfielder that the US team needs.

Hope Solo was quoted by Alyssa Roenigk at ESPN.com as saying:

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She's always had the talent, but she's been up and down. With maturity and experience, she has been bringing it every day and that is hard to do.

It was a process. It slowly started to come where she'd play great one half and disappear in the second half. And now she is there, scoring goals, providing assistance on goals, on corners, great set pieces. She's a real weapon for us.

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The defending champions are definitely one team to watch.  Not only for the names we all recognize, but for the newer players out to make a name for themselves.

Will the women's soccer team be able to go all the way this year and keep the gold in the U.S.? Hopefully, but as the Olympics go on, anything can happen, which is why this team is one to watch.

Men's Basketball

The biggest team to watch at this year's summer Olympics is the men’s basketball team.

It started with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James believing that the 2012 Olympic team could beat the 1992 Dream Team.  Whether you agree with that or not, it definitely sparked an interest in the men’s basketball team.

The team is filled with an All-Star roster that we may only see play together once in a lifetime.

Basketball is also one of the strongest sports for the U.S. in the Summer Olympics.  They dominated France in a 98-71 win on Sunday and dominated Tunisia in the end on Tuesday with a score of 110-63.

While they may not be as good as the 1992 Dream Team in the opinion of some basketball fans, this current Olympic group of All-Stars is nothing to scoff at.

Now, the US men's basketball team will gear up to take on Nigeria on Thursday and see if they can keep their momentum moving.  More than likely, they will come out on top Thursday night, but as we get closer to the finals, it will be interesting to see if the 2012 team lives up to their hype.

The men's basketball team is the one sport where you don't want to miss any of the action.  Will the U.S. continue their domination throughout the tournament, or will they be upset at some point?

The best way to find out is to watch the men's basketball team as they try and go for the gold.