COLUMBIA, SC ― For a moment in USC's first-round Women's NCAA Tournament matchup Saturday against Clemson, Trojans head coach Lindsey Gottlieb though her team's season was over.
Clemson senior guard Mia Moore had just hit what looked to be a buzzer-beating 3 that would've sent USC home.
Gottlieb turned to her director of video, Rex Greabell, and her mind was put at ease.
"As soon as that play happened," she said, "I just turned and looked at him, and I said, 'Did it beat the clock?' He said, 'I don't think so.'"
Greabell knew what the official would learn minutes later, USC was going to overtime. It changed how the Trojans handled the time the refs spent rewatching the film.
"It actually changed my whole demeanor," Gottlieb said. "I was able to be calm in the huddle and say, 'This thing's going to overtime. We need to get ready.'"
The No. 9 seed Trojans were ready. The beat the No. 8 Tigers 71-67 to advance before falling to South Carolina in Round 2.
It's only Greabell's second year with the program. But his responsibilities, because of a new NCAA rule on coaches' challenges passed last summer, have expanded this year. The NCAA Women's Basketball Rules Committee decided before this season to allow teams to challenge, among other decisions, rulings on out of bounds violations and possessions involving a foul.
"We've had probably five or six chances to really make a mark and steal a possession here and there," Greabell said of challenges the Trojans have used this season.
The Alabama bench celebrate after a big three-point shot by Alabama Crimson Tide guard Karly Weathers (22) in the fourth quarter against Louisville during the 2026 NCAA Women's March Madness Second Round basketball at the KFC Yum Center In Louisville, Ky. Weathers finished with 13 points. March 23, 2026." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
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The Alabama bench celebrate after a big three-point shot by Alabama Crimson Tide guard Karly Weathers (22) in the fourth quarter against Louisville during the2026 NCAA Women's March MadnessSecond Round basketball at the KFC Yum Center In Louisville, Ky. Weathers finished with 13 points. March 23, 2026.
South Carolina has had its director of women's basketball video services, Hudson Jacobs, for 15 years. But the NCAA rules changes, Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley said, "upped the ante" on how much teams lean the video experts on staff.
These experts sit on the bench during games, consistently reviewing plays on their tablets.
"We could see on the iPad that the ball was still in her hand when the clock went to zero," Greabell said of Moore's shot on Saturday.
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Gottlieb said Greabell has "almost a 100% success rate" this season at seeing whether calls should be challenged.
"All I've done my whole life has been an armchair referee," Greabell said.
With Jacobs on staff, South Carolina has been at the forefront of video operations for years.
"When I started, it was still VHS/DVD, which was a long time ago," Jacobs said.
The rules changes, he said, have "brought a lot of extra split-second decisions, having to find stuff on the fly that wasn't really a thing up until this year."
Staley was in the arena for the USC-Clemson game, scouting her team's next opponent. She admitted she was fooled by the initial call ― thinking Moore's shot had beat the buzzer.
Staley added she's thankful the game has the technology to get the call right.
"It's great. I think the officials want to get it right," Staley said. "I think it's a powerful tool."
Like Staley, Gottlieb is grateful to have a video expert by her side.
"Obviously his ability to look and say honestly, 'I think it was after the clock,' just allowed me to coach the team," she said of Greabell's help with the chaotic stretch in Saturday's game against Clemson. "That's what a great staff and a great support staff does. They set up everything so the players can play, and they set up everything so I can do my job."
Peter Bartlett and Grant Turnage are students in the University of Georgia's Carmical Sports Media Institute.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Video coordinators take on bigger role in Women's March Madness