COUNTDOWN TO OLYMPICS

* Days until opening ceremony: Six.

* Olympic update: In a rebuff to the IOC, the Australian government will not reconsider its decision to bar two Asian Olympic officials from entering the country for the Sydney Games.

* March to the medals: The U.S. men’s basketball team arrived in Melbourne and prepared to face medal hopeful Australia on Saturday.

* Carrying the torch: Continued its journey north to Sydney, starting the day at Bega and finishing at Batemans Bay--stopping along the way at Bermagui, a fishing town of 1,000.

* Olympic footnote: A White House-financed study released Friday criticizes the IOC and other sports governing bodies for their inconsistent policies for combating performance-enhancing drugs. It recommends creating an international organization, independent of the IOC, that would be responsible for drug testing and banning substances.