BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Raina Perez, a North Carolina State guard, charged toward the basket and glanced behind her, searching for the kind of Saturday afternoon chaos she had just started.
N.C. State, the Bridgeport region’s top seed, was trailing with less than 18 seconds to go. Now, Perez, having just seized the ball from Notre Dame’s Dara Mabrey, was the Wolfpack’s best chance. Maybe, it seemed, its last reasonable one.
She turned her head back toward her target. Her layup fell in with about 15 seconds to play to give the Wolfpack their first lead since early in the second quarter.