What to watch for - Day 7.

I say it every morning, but wasn’t last night great? Some great finishes at the aquatic center and a comeback for a medal in men’s gymnastics. More of the same should happen tonight,

We’ve heard a lot about the women’s gymnastics all-around since Sunday and today is the actual competition. No, Jordyn Weiber will not be in it. But Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman will be. Russia’s Viktoria Komova posted the best qualifying and was the favorite after Sunday, while Russia will also have a chance in Aliya Mustafina. I think that Douglas is now the favorite after her performance in team finals. While Komova is very talented and came within tenths of beating Weiber at the world championships last year, she showed that she can let emotion get to her during a competition. The question will be what type of gymnast shows up tonight? Raisman is solid and consistent but lacks the start value of both Douglas and Komova. However, if the others slip and she performs like she has all year, Raisman could end up quite a surprise. In the past Douglas has had struggles with staying concentrated and faltered in big meets. If she competes like she has in these games she could be the third straight all-around champion for the U.S. Beijing was the first time the Americans went one-two and there is a strong chance that could happen again today.

Tonight is Michael Phelps v. Ryan Lochte 2.0 with the 200m individual medley, basically the same race from Saturday just cut in half. This storyline has not been as advertised since Lochte destroyed everyone in the 400 IM and has struggled since, while Phelps struggled and has now picked up some steam. Lochte is the reigning world champion and current world record holder, while Phelps is the two-time defending Olympic champion. Lochte ended up qualifying first and Phelps third, which puts them next to each other in lanes three and four. If Phelps wins, he’ll be the first person to win three gold medals in the same individual event. I’m just hoping this race lives up to the original hype!

Lochte will have a quick turnaround for the 200 IM since he swims in the 200m backstroke right before. The question will be if Lochte seems to save anything for his showdown with Phelps or will go for the gold here and see what he has left in the IM. American Tyler Clary was the top qualifier and will swim in land four, while Lochte qualified second and will be in lane five.

Missy Franklins goes for medal number four in her fifth race – the 100m freestyle - of the games. Franklin will be in lane three, while current Team USA member Jessica Hardy will be in lane eight. Watch out for top qualifier Ranomo Kromowidjojo from the Netherlands who had a great semifinal win.

American Rebecca Soni has a chance to defend her Olympic title in the 200m breaststoke. Soni set a new world record in qualifying and is swimming very strong. The U.S. also has another great swimmer in Micah Lawrence who will be in lane seven.

Also today, USA men’s basketball takes on Nigeria at 5:15 p.m. (est). The Americans are averaging 104 points per game. This is Nigera’s first time in the Olympic games and is currently 1-1 after losing to Litiuania. We’ll see if Kobe Bryant has the opportunity to do what he did against Tunisia – autograph an opposing player’s shoe after a game.