Saniya Rivers joined the NC State women’s basketball program fresh off a national championship with South Carolina as a freshman in 2022.
The Wolfpack was reeling from a double-overtime loss as a No. 1 seed playing No. 2 UConn in Bridgeport, Connecticut, for a Final Four berth.
The moment they converged, Reynolds Coliseum became a crossroads.
Rivers and the Wolfpack program had arrived from different places but they were on the same trajectory.
It took them all the way to Cleveland and the 2024 Final Four.
“Going into my sophomore year in a new environment, I was like, this is a chance to start over, start fresh,” Rivers said after this season’s 28-point win over Kent State in Reynolds – the second game played under the Wolfpack’s 2024 Final Four banner.
“I came into a welcoming family at NC State and I’m confident now.
“They just brought so much love and energy and I feel like I brought energy to this team; I feel like I brought energy to this program, a different playing style.”
Rivers, although her name makes it seem ironic, is the bridge between the NC State Final Four team that should’ve been and the one that ultimately was.
Her return to her home state coincided with the departure of three-time ACC tournament champion steadies Kai Crutchfield, Kayla Jones and two-time All-American Elissa Cunane, along with outstanding point guard Raina Perez.
After a sophomore year that included 20 wins – one over Caitlin Clark and then-No. 10 Iowa when Rivers poured in a season-high 22 points – and a disappointing first-round loss in the NCAA tournament, Rivers was named ACC Sixth-Player of the Year. Still, she said, the squad was “trying to figure it out.”
Just three games into the 2023-24 season, the Wolfpack had an opportunity to prove itself and gain a measure of payback with a home game against No. 2 UConn and a starting lineup featuring Paige Bueckers, Aaliyah Edwards, Nika Muhl and Azzi Fudd. Rivers outshined all of them.
Starting at point guard, the junior posted 33 points, 10 rebounds, three blocked shots, five assists and three steals in the Wolfpack’s 92-81 win – their first victory over the Huskies since the one in 1998 that sent coach Kay Yow to her only Final Four.
Rivers’ performance showed a large audience how uniquely skilled the slippery 6-foot-1 guard can be: weaving around defenders, sneaking up for blocks, drilling mid-range pull-ups, knocking down threes, pushing the pace and finishing strong. At one point she picked off a pass at midcourt, wrapped the dribble around her back, and then split two defenders on her way to the basket for a layup.
Wolfpack fans had seen moments like these before. Rivers treated them to a dunk during Primetime with the Pack, and her reputation as the national player of the year as a senior at Wilmington’s Eugene Ashley High was well known in North Carolina.
She makes the remarkable seem like a step she can reach anytime; accelerating into a blurry-fast crossover, stealing on the run from passing lanes that seemed safe, rebounding over post players. So having her lead NC State to its first Final Four in 26 years and only the second in program history makes sense, on a larger scale. Anyway, she was already an NCAA champion when she came to Raleigh.
Wolfpack coach Wes Moore recruited Rivers while she was in high school and his hunch about her fit in his program was dead on. With plug-and-play versatility, she moves within the flow of the game, an unselfish player often creating for teammates.
“I love getting my teammates involved,” she said. “As long as we get the win and I’m contributing in some way.”
Those teammates have bonded into what Rivers calls a “sisterhood” and she credits that bond for their chemistry and production on the court. After losing Mimi Collins and River Baldwin to graduation, this season’s Wolfpack doesn’t have an experienced post, often playing four guards while carving out time for freshmen Devyn Quigley and Zamareya Jones.
They haven’t yet reached the level of smooth precision from the last postseason as All-ACC first-teamer Aziaha James absolutely blew up. Madison Hayes and Zoe Brooks also made big contributions to the Wolfpack’s Final Four run and they’re back with all the promise of another amazing season, once the pieces settle into place.
And Rivers will have one last chance to add another NCAA championship ring to her collection, this one from the program she met at a crossroads and helped usher into reclaimed glory on her terms.
“It’s just different,” she said. “And it’s a good different.”
