It was another tough day on the Place de la Concorde court for the U.S., which watched both it's men's and women's 3x3 teams go from gold-medal contenders to 0-2 over the first two days of competition. But five games of pool play still remain, giving each squad plenty of chance to get things headed in the right direction. Here's what to watch for around Olympic 3x3 basketball on Aug. 1, with pool play sessions at 3 a.m., 6:30 a.m., noon and 3:30 p.m. ET.

It's now or never for both U.S. teams

The U.S. women entered as defending gold medalists, the U.S. men with real hopes for gold of their own after earning silver at last year's World Cup. But it hasn't gone to plan so far, with each squad starting 0-2 after another rough day on Wednesday. Thursday brings a double session, meaning that both teams could be back to .500 and feeling much better about themselves by the end of the afternoon. But it's going to take real improvement across the board, and stars like Hailey Van Lith and Jimmer Fredette simply aren't playing up to their potential. Plus, the schedule does the U.S. no favors: The women face Australia and Spain, each of which won on Wednesday, while the men face Lithuania and Tokyo gold medalists Latvia.

Can China slay another giant?

China's men's team delivered among the more shocking results of Wednesday's pool play, decisively beating world No. 1 Serbia, 20-15, for its first win of the competition. Now China will go from the reigning World Cup champions to the reigning Olympic champions, as it gets set to do battle with Latvia on Thursday morning before taking on 1-1 Poland in the afternoon. By the end of the day, we'll know a lot more about how for real this team is after an eighth-place finish in Tokyo.

Can France keep the home-court magic going?

Not much was expected of France, even on home soil, after Les Bleus failed to qualify for Tokyo and finished eighth at last year's World Cup. But this tournament is full of surprises, and France has been one of the biggest, snatching two improbable wins against Poland on Wednesday and Lithuania on Thursday. Both games featured heart-stopping finishes, and a raucous home-court environment has undoubtedly helped France emerge victorious. Can the high-wire act continue? We'll find out in tough games against the Netherlands and star Worthy de Jong and top-ranked Serbia.

Is Canada the new women's favorite?

Another surprise: Canada at 2-0, having romped over Australia in its opener before romping again over China on Wednesday. This team is bombs away from two-point range, using the unique math of the 3x3 game to its advantage. A big day Thursday could really solidify it as a medal contender, and Germany and France both present winnable games.