Japan claimed the 7-1 victory with a steal of three in the ninth, when USA's Debbie McCormick came up several feet shy of the house on a draw to the four-foot. The Americans conceded at that point, and have a full day off now before meeting Scotland in the playoffs. The Scots were humbled by previously winless Italy this morning, 9-7. Switzerland defeated China 9-4 in the only other game of the draw.

USA clinched a playoff berth by default Wednesday night when Sweden's Anette Norberg rink was upset by Czech Republic, 8-6. Had the two-time defending champion and 2006 Olympic gold medalist Swedes won that game, and their final one today against Russia, they could have forced a tiebreaker with USA for the playoffs.

Despite having already qualified for the final four, USA did have something on the line against Japan, as the right combination of wins and losses by Scotland (7-3) and Denmark (8-2) could have allowed the Americans to finish the round robin in second. This would have put them in the #1 vs. #2 Page Playoff game, which guarantees an extra shot at the medals. Instead, Canada (10-0) and Denmark will meet in that game.

In the Page system, the #1 and #2 finishers in the round robin face each other, with the winner advancing to the gold medal game. Meanwhile, the #3 and #4 round robin finishers meet, with the loser going home and the winner moving on to meet the loser of the 1-2 game to determine the second finalist. The loser of the latter game takes home the bronze.

All that aside, USA vice skip Allison Pottinger (Eden Prairie, Minn.) said her team also just wanted to play well as a tune-up for what lies ahead. "It's great from a mental standpoint to play well going into the playoffs, so we really wanted to come out and make a statement today," she said. "We're a little disappointed."

Give credit where it's due, too, as Meguro shot 96 percent for the game, maybe only missing a bow somewhere along the line, which certainly wouldn't have been intentional given how royally polite and accommodating Japan as a nation has been for this championship.

It was a simply-played affair for the most part, with Japan blanking the first two ends before taking one in the third, and then stealing one in the fifth end after USA missed a chance for multiple points. McCormick's first shot wrecked on a guard trying to get at Japan's counter in the four-foot, and her draw for one came up an inch or two short.

The Americans had another deuce set up in the sixth, until that opportunity disintegrated when McCormick's first-rock draw behind a corner guard settled into the perfect spot for Meguro to make a double, which she obligingly did. USA ended up blanking that end, and was forced to hit for one in the seventh.

"The ice straightened out a little on us today, and we weren't able to get our draws buried," said Pottinger. "We just couldn't get that two." She also noted that the team had poor rock placement, something McCormick forecasted as being very important going into this game.

The poor positioning was nowhere more evident than in the ninth and ultimately final end, played mostly around a corner guard in the back of the house. The end turned upside down for USA when Pottinger's tap back attempt caromed off the guard, and soon the Japanese were counting three.

"When I didn't get my second rock around there, I said, "Uh oh,"" Pottinger remarked. "I knew we could be in trouble."

McCormick had to try a difficult double with her first shot in order to give USA a chance at scoring more than one. She didn't hit the right side of the rock, though, and the end result was that Japan was still counting two. Make that three after Meguro's final shot in this championship, and shortly after USA's ill-fated draw, those three were on the board and hands were being shaken.

Canada closes out the round robin today against Scotland. As the clear winner of the round robin, they will also have last-rock advantage in the first end of every playoff game they're in. The Italians will see if they can pull off a second upset this afternoon when they take on Denmark.

The 3-4 playoff game is at 8 p.m. Friday, while the 1-2 game is at 3 p.m. Saturday. (All times local, 13 hours ahead of EST.) The bronze medal game is at 8 p.m. Saturday, and the gold medal game at 2 p.m. Sunday.

Live and on-demand video streaming from the World Curling Championships is available through a partnership between USA Curling, the World Curling Federation, NBCSports.com and MediaZone. More details can be found at www.usacurl.org.

A one-hour sports special on the gold medal game will air on CSTV (College Sports TV) at 9 p.m. EST April, with multiple re-airs to be announced at a later date.

Game scores: Draw 15 - China 6, Japan 4; Czech Republic 8, Sweden 6; Canada 8, Denmark 1; Germany 8, Russia 7. Draw 16 - Switzerland 9, China 4; Japan 7, USA 1; Italy 9, Scotland 7.

USA line scores:
*JPN 010 010 023 x 7
USA 000 000 100 x 1
*designates last-rock advantage in first end

Round robin standings
Canada 10-0
Denmark 8-2
Scotland 7-3
USA 7-4
Switzerland 6-5
Sweden 5-5
China 5-6
Russia 4-6
Japan 4-7
Germany 3-7
Czech Republic 2-8
Italy 1-9

USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, AmerAust Technologies and Nike as well as by AT&T, General Motors, The Home Depot, and Bank of America through a joint marketing program with the U.S. Olympic Committee.

For more information: Rick Patzke, USA Curling, rick.patzke@usacurl.org.