Seconds Left

LANDOVER -- Last night's game was an opportunity for the Washington Bullets to get back into the win column and perhaps a chance to beat up on one of the new expansion teams. Instead, the Bullets found themselves a footnote in the brief history of the Toronto Raptors.That's what happened after Toronto rookie point guard Damon Stoudamire calmly backed Robert Pack down in the lane and hit a 13-foot jumper with 2.5 seconds left that helped the Raptors to a 103-102 win before a sellout crowd of 18,756 fans at the USAir Arena.

When the referee held up the ball signaling the end of last night's Patterson-Northern game at Patterson Park, some players fell to the ground. Others were on their knees. Some cried.Both teams may qualify for post-season play, but they will be hard-pressed to match last night's 42-36 classic, won by the No. 10 Clippers in a Baltimore City Class 4A League contest.Senior quarterback Devin Jones sprinted 9 yards for the game-winning score with 10 seconds remaining, capping a comeback for Clippers (4-1, 4-0)

BOSTON -- As their players have done all season, the University of Maryland Terrapins played their best when their backs were pushed to the wall. The Terps women's basketball team came from behind in exciting fashion last night to win the NCAA championship, defeating the Duke Blue Devils, 78-75, in overtime. A team that battled illness, inexperience and doubters overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half. Freshman Kristi Toliver hit a three-point basket with 6.1 seconds left in regulation to force the extra period.

LANDOVER -- Unseeded Brazil, outplayed the entire second half, stole a dramatic 3-3 draw with top-seeded Germany in Women's World Cup play yesterday, turning a botched clear of a free kick into a goal 10 seconds from the game's end."We have a saying, `God is Brazilian,' so this proves it," said coach Wilson De Oliveira Rica, grinning over the goal that came nearly four minutes into stoppage time, his team's only bright moment of the second half.Second-half substitute Maicon had the errant ball drop to her in traffic 14 yards from goal and just to the right of center, and she slammed home a rising shot for the tie with scarcely 10 seconds left.

Last night, with 3.4 seconds left in overtime and the score tied at 60 against Woodlawn, Owings Mills guard Michael Kleeman stepped to the free-throw line. Eagles coach Richard Epps described Kleeman as "about a 95 percent free-throw shooter," so the game seemed as if it was in the right player's hands. Kleeman shot the first free throw and the ball hit the rim, spun in, then out, and fell to the court, leaving the game tied. He had one more shot to give his team the lead. The pressure didn't faze him. "I wasn't worried," Kleeman, a senior, said.

The South Carroll Cavaliers were there to the very end last night.Against visiting Linganore -- ranked second in the state, undefeated all of last season and so far this year -- that's saying something.The Class 3A Lancers, who won the Class 2A title last spring, needed a driving layup from standout senior guard Cara Consuegra with eight seconds left to get past a South Carroll team that has shown it only knows how to play one way this season -- all out.With the 65-63 win, the Lancers improve to 14-0 on the season and stretch their undefeated string to 39 games.

Eastern Tech had little trouble in routing its first three opponents. But the Mavericks found many more problems last night against the Calvert Hall football team. Quarterback Joey Jones capped off an 86-yard drive by running for a 2-yard touchdown with 27.6 seconds left, and Luke Horner kicked the extra point to give No. 6 Eastern Tech a 14-13 victory over Calvert Hall at CCBC-Essex. The Cardinals had taken a 13-7 lead when Patrick Fitzgerald threw a slant over the middle that Christian Cook turned into a 75-yard touchdown pass with 4:12 left.

COLLEGE PARK -- While Ludwig Field has been a virtual house of horrors for most opposing teams, No.5 Indiana marched in and didnt flinch, scoring three second-half goals to salvage a 3-3 tie last night. Jason Garey scored two first-half goals, including one on a spectacular bicycle kick, but the No.3 Terps could not hold the early lead and gave up the tying goal with five seconds left in front of 6,203 spectators the largest crowd to ever watch a mens soccer game in College Park. The Terps (13-3-1)

TUCSON, Ariz. -- For the second time in as many games, Jaraan Cornell shook off a rough first half and starred in the second to lead Purdue, this time to a 66-62 win over Oklahoma yesterday. Thirteen of Cornell's 15 points came in the final 9: 27, including three free throws that broke a 60-60 tie with 43.7 seconds left. "We were stale; I was stale," Cornell said. "Coach said we needed someone to step up and make defensive plays and someone has to make offensive plays." At one point, Cornell -- who scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half of Thursday's win over Dayton -- scored eight straight points for the Boilermakers (23-9)

A victory over Dunbar by a city opponent has been very rare. But the losses for Dunbar are becoming too familiar.The No. 9 Poets suffered their fourth loss of the season yesterday, losing to host and No. 4 Southwestern, 68-66, in a Baltimore City nonleague game.Southwestern senior guard Reginald Johnson's layup with just over three seconds remaining was the decisive score, ending a five-minute scoring drought for the Sabers (6-1).On the ensuing possession, Chris Dean inbounded the ball to Tim Lyles who drove down the court and launched a three-pointer from 19 feet that bounced off the rim as time expired, setting off a small celebration by some of the Southwestern fans at mid-court.