NEW ORLEANS — The lights went out at the Superdome during the Super Bowl. Only then did the game really begin.

In a sporting event that has had spectacular finishes as well as an infamous wardrobe malfunction during a halftime performance, the electricity at the Superdome stole the show on Sunday night, interrupting the third quarter for more than a half-hour and seemingly shifting the momentum of the game in a dramatic way.

Moments after the Ravens’ Jacoby Jones returned the opening kickoff of the second half 108 yards for a touchdown, giving Baltimore a 22-point lead, the stadium’s power failed. That plunged the teams, the 71,024 fans in attendance and millions of television viewers into low light and raised the sort of question that sports fans love to ponder: how might such a weird interruption affect the game?

After 34 minutes in which players stretched, fans did the wave and Ravens Coach John Harbaugh screamed at a league official in a suit, play resumed, and the teams had their answer. The energy had leaked out of the Ravens during the unexpected break, allowing the San Francisco 49ers to surge to within 2 points, but Baltimore held on for a 34-31 victory.