Sports

Kris Jenkins buried a buzzer-beating three-pointer to lift Villanova to a thrilling 77-74 upset victory over North Carolina in the US college basketball championship game in Houston on Monday.

It was a fitting end to a springtime single-elimination competition known affectionately as “March Madness” for its regular upsets and last-second victories.

Jenkins’ jump shot from distance splashed through the hoop with no time left on the clock, five seconds after Marcus Paige had rattled in an off-balance heave from outside the arc for the Tar Heels to tie the NCAA final at 74-74.

The victory gave the Philadelphia-area university a second national title, adding to a 1985 upset victory over Georgetown.

Back-up guard Phil Booth led the winners with 20 points, hitting six-of-seven shots with backcourt mate Ryan Arcidiacono adding 16. Paige led North Carolina with 21 points with his fellow guard Joel Berry scoring 20.

Top seeds North Carolina, a double-digit winner in each of their five games en route to the final, held a 39-34 half-time lead in pursuit of a sixth title but the Wildcats battled back, going on a 33-16 run to forge a 10-point lead with 5:29 left.

Second seeds Villanova were denied a stroll to the finish by the desperate Tar Heels, whose fan section featured more than 50 former players, including Hall of Famer Michael Jordan, who as a freshman hit the winning shot in their 1982 title victory.

Using superior size to shut down access to the hoop, North Carolina (33-7) staged a fierce comeback, capped by Paige’s desperation three-pointer that seemed likely to send the game to overtime.

However, senior guard Arcidiacono raced down the court and shovelled a pass to an open Jenkins, who pulled the trigger on a classic game winner that sent ecstatic Villanova (35-5) players into a heap on the floor as confetti rained down.

After Paige’s electric, game-tying three-pointer, Villanova coach Jay Wright called time to set up their final play.

“We put it in Arch’s hands,” Wright said. “It’s Arch’s job to make a decision. Arch made the perfect pass and Kris Jenkins lives for that moment.”

Jenkins, nicknamed the Big Smooth, said: “I think every shot is going in. So that one was no different.”

Arcidiacono, named the final four’s most outstanding player, said: “It’s an unbelievable way to go out. That’s just something that everyone dreams about.”

Teary-eyed North Carolina coach Roy Williams said: “I’ve been a head coach for 28 years and the worst thing is, with a loss like this I feel so inadequate because I don’t know how to make it better.”

Meanwhile, Shaquille O’Neal, Allen Iverson, Tom Izzo and modern-day basketball pioneers Yao Ming and Sheryl Swoopes headline the 2016 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class announced Monday.

Long-time Chicago Bulls owner and Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf will be enshrined and posthumous inductees are NBA referee Darrell Garretson, John McLendon, the first African-American coach in professional basketball, and former stars Zelmo Beaty and Cumberland Posey.

O’Neal was an unstoppable force as a 7-foot-1 dunking machine who was named a 15-time NBA All-Star. He was a three-time NBA finals MVP, won four NBA titles and was the NBA MVP in 2000. He was one of the first crossover stars to go beyond endorsements, earning regular roles on the big screen.

Iverson was a brash point guard who averaged 26.7 points despite standing just 6-foot tall. The 11-time All-Star known as “The Answer” was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1996 draft. He was named rookie of the year, won four scoring titles was the 2001 NBA MVP, leading the Sixers to the NBA finals, where they lost to O’Neal’s Lakers.

Izzo won a national title at Michigan State in 2000, has led the Spartans to seven final fours and earned 524 career victories since becoming the head coach at Michigan State in 1995.

Swoopes was the first WNBA player signed and won three MVP awards and four WNBA titles.

Ming, the No. 1 overall pick in 2002 of the Houston Rockets and a transcendent 7-foot-6 center, is recognised as much for opening the door to international stars as his statistics.

Ming’s career ended early because of foot injuries but he averaged 19 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game in eight seasons but played only five games combined in his final two seasons.

Reinsdorf also owns the Chicago White Sox but is identified for elevating the Bulls into consistent winners during the pairing of Michael Jordan and Phil Jackson. The Bulls won six NBA championships in the 1990s.

Garretson was an NBA referee for 27 years and spent 17 years as the league’s chief of officiating.

Real Madrid will carry their momentum from Saturday’s “Clasico” victory over rivals Barcelona into their Champions League quarter-final first leg at struggling VfL Wolfsburg on Wednesday, coach Zinedine Zidane said.

Real scored their first league win at the Nou Camp since 2012, inflicting the first home defeat for Barcelona since February 2015.

“It is very important to have got the win here for our confidence and for the remainder of the season and with it coming right before our Champions League game in Germany,” said Zidane.

“We know just how important the Champions League is and we want to advance, so winning here in Barcelona was very important.”

The Frenchman took over from Rafael Benitez at the start of the year and on Saturday came through his first big Test with flying colours.

“I liked everything about my players’ performance. We put in a massive effort and I was pleased with everything, both defensively and attacking-wise,” said the 43-year-old, who as a player led Real to the Champions League title in 2002.

“When I see a team that is united and all together, with everyone fighting for their teammates and for their coach, there’s nothing better.”

Zidane has every right to be satisfied with the form of Madrid as they aim to keep alive their unbeaten run in this year’s competition in the quarter-finals.

They have won six successive games in all competitions since losing 1-0 at home to Atletico on February 27.

With Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema in goal-scoring form and Gareth Bale delivering assists, Real are an awe-inspiring prospect for mercurial Wolfsburg, struggling domestically this season.

Last year’s Bundesliga runners-up and German Cup winners slumped to a 3-0 loss at Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday, putting European participation next season at risk.

Wolfsburg, eighth in the Bundesliga, have also been struggling for goals in recent weeks, having scored just once in their last three league matches.

But Bast Dost, their top scorer last season, could make his comeback on Wednesday after being sidelined since January with a broken foot.

Wolfsburg sports director Klaus Allofs hopes the team will recover for what is the club’s biggest European game to date and their first ever last eight appearance.

“It would be fatal if we did not look forward to this game, a Champions League quarter-final,” Allofs said.

“We have to enjoy this but also make sure we correct some things from our Leverkusen performance. I am convinced we will see a different VfL on Wednesday.”

Lock horns

It is time to deliver for Paris St Germain and Manchester City as the two mega-rich teams prepare to lock horns in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday.

PSG, who were crowned Ligue 1 champions last month, are attempting to reach the last four for the first time since Qatar Sport Investment started investing hundreds of millions of dollars into the club in 2011.

City, who have been backed by the wealth of Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi for the last eight years. are featuring in the last eight of Europe’s biggest club competition for the first time.

France midfielder Samir Nasri believes his City side are the underdogs.

“Paris are the favourites,” said the former Arsenal player. “They’ve got the experience.”

PSG, who knocked Chelsea out 4-2 on aggregate in the last 16, geared up for Wednesday’s game by thrashing Nice 4-1 with talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic bagging a hat-trick to take his goal tally in Ligue 1 this season to 30 goals.

City also warmed up in style with a handsome 4-0 win at Bournemouth but they have several injury concerns.

Manuel Pellegrini’s men are definitely minus captain Vincent Kompany and are likely to be without goalkeeper Joe Hart and midfielder Yaya Toure. All three players have calf problems.

“It may be difficult for them to be fit for Wednesday,” Pellegrini said of Hart and Toure.

The good news for City is that Nasri and Belgium midfielder Kevin De Bruyne are fit again following lengthy injury layoffs.

PSG midfielder Marco Verratti is sidelined with a groin injury although his team managed well enough without the Italian international when they beat Chelsea 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in the second leg last month.

Forward Javier Pastore, who is often used as a substitute, is missing with a calf problem but playmaker Angel Di Maria is set to return following a minor knee injury.

Ibrahimovic has been on fire in attack recently but midfielder Thiago Motta said it was more important how PSG fared as a team against City.

“It will not be Ibra against City but PSG against City,” the Italian said. “Maybe he will make the difference if he scores a goal but that’s not what matters.

“What matters is that we win the game. If he puts himself under pressure saying he has to win the match it’s not going to go well.”

BARCELONA/ MUNCIH — Barcelona’s 39-match unbeaten run may have ended with Saturday’s home defeat by Real Madrid but the European champions are adamant it was a temporary blip on their road to more glory.

Atletico Madrid will have taken real heart from their neighbours’ 2-1 victory at the Nou Camp as they go to the same venue in Tuesday’s quarter-final, first leg believing they can repeat their triumph over Barca at the same stage in 2014.

Yet, as the shockwaves reverberated through the European game after Barcelona’s late setback against 10-man Real, Barca captain Andres Iniesta told reporters: “This game won’t affect our mentality on Tuesday.

“Everyone is hurting after losing but we have to analyse what we did wrong so we don’t repeat the mistakes.”

Though Barcelona are six points clear of nearest pursuers Atletico at the top of la Liga, the attacking trident of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez lacked sharpness against Real.

It may have been a consequence of long journeys back from South America after representing their countries in World Cup qualifiers last week but Iniesta did not use that as an excuse.

Barca defender Gerard Pique, hoping to be part of the first team to achieve a domestic league and Cup and European Cup treble in consecutive years, added: “We have to move on, it’s a defeat but we are still alive in all competitions.

“Now we have to make sure we don’t fall into a slump, because we’re in a unique position.”

Atletico, who gave themselves an ideal send-off for the trip to Barca by thrashing Real Betis 5-1, are in confident mood even if recent history points to a Barca win.

The Catalans’ coach Luis Enrique has a perfect record against his Atletico counterpart Diego Simeone, having won all six of his games against the side from the capital.

Yet, Barcelona know exactly what a formidable opponent the Argentine Simeone remains as he masterminded their exit two years ago, winning the quarter-final tie 2-1 on aggregate after securing a 1-1 draw in the second leg at the Nou Camp.

Atletico’s Spanish international Juanfran said this time, with his side enjoying the advantage of playing at home in the second leg, the primary aim was to stay in the tie.

“We’re going there feeling very strong and our aim is to play well over there,” the defender told Canal Plus.

“It’s all about coming back from the Nou Camp with the game still alive so we can try and win the tie at our place.”

Simeone, naturally still hoping to leave the Nou Camp with a crucial away goal, told a news conference he would reward Fernando Torres for his excellent run of five goals in seven league matches by starting the 32-year-old on Tuesday.

Torres has a fine record against Barcelona, having scored 10 goals against them in 14 games for Atletico and Chelsea.

His most celebrated strike was the decisive equaliser for eventual champions Chelsea at the Nou Camp in a Champions League semi-final, second leg in 2012 which knocked out the Catalans.

Turning up?

A quick look at past and current form might have Benfica wondering whether it is worth even turning up for their Champions League quarter-final tie at Bayern Munich on Tuesday.

Whether it be Bayern’s home record in Europe this season, their record against Portuguese teams or simply the head-to-head record between the Bavarians and Benfica, all the numbers point overwhelmingly to a Bayern win in the first leg.

Benfica will be all too aware that their great rivals Porto also faced Bayern at the same stage of the competition last year and were trounced 6-1 at the Allianz Area after shipping five goals in a 22-minute spell in the first half.

In fact, Bayern have won all nine of their previous two-legged knockout ties against Portuguese opposition, including three against Benfica.

Their previous three home games against Benfica ended in one 5-1 and two 4-1 wins, and their overall record against the Eagles is four wins and two draws in six games.

Current form makes even worse reading for Benfica: Bayern have won all four home Champions League games this season, blasting 18 goals in the process.

However, Benfica, who won the old European Cup twice back in the 1960s, have made a habit of defying the odds in their first season under coach Rui Vitoria.

“Bayern are really difficult opponents but this team has already got over several barriers this season,” he said after Friday’s 5-1 league win over Braga.

“This team has achieved things which it appeared impossible to achieve and that is the spirit we will take into the game,” said Vitoria, whose side are looking to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 1990.

Vitoria looked as if he would last only a few weeks in the job after Benfica began the season by losing three times to neighbours Sporting and were beaten by archrivals Porto.

Instead, they now find themselves five points clear at the top of the league and in the Champions League quarter-finals after winning 19 of their last 20 games in all competitions.

Their win over Zenit St Petersburg seemed highly unlikely when they were forced to take a makeshift defence to Russia to defend a 1-0 lead in the second leg, yet they came through with a 2-1 win.

Benfica boldly took the tie to their opponents in the first half of that game and may try to do so again on Tuesday.

Especially as Bayern have an injury crisis in defence, where Jerome Boateng and Holger Badstuber are ruled out and Medhi Benatia and Javi Martinez are doubtful.

Juventus showed in the previous round that Bayern can be vulnerable as they went 2-0 ahead inside half an hour. However, Bayern’s comeback, where they scored four goals to win 4-2 after extra time, was yet another ominous example of their strength at home.

Isaiah Thomas scored 26 points and Jae Crowder added 22 more, leading the Boston Celtics to a 107-100 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Centre on Sunday night.

Boston (45-32) clinched a play-off berth with the win.

Warriors 136, Trail Blazers 111

Stephen Curry scored 14 of his game-high 39 points in the third quarter Sunday night, helping the Golden State Warriors pull away from the Portland Trail Blazers en route to a 136-111 victory.

Playing for the first time since having their 54-game, home court winning streak ended by Boston on Friday night, the Warriors (69-8) kept their record perfect in games following losses with an eighth straight win.

Bulls 102, Bucks 98

Jabari Parker and Giannis Antetokounmpo combined for 58 points but Jimmy Butler hit two clutch buckets late to help the Chicago Bulls hold on for a 102-98 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks Sunday evening at the Bradley Centre.

Butler hit 9 of 10 shots from the field to finish with a team-high 25 for Chicago, which gained a half game on Indiana in the race for the eighth and final Eastern Conference play-off spot.

Pacers 92, Knicks 87

Paul George hit the tiebreaking basket with 23.6 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter as the Indiana Pacers squandered an 18-point lead before pulling out a 92-87 victory over the New York Knicks Sunday night.

The Pacers shot 4 of 16 in the fourth and their biggest hoop came in the final minute. After getting an inbounds pass from Monta Ellis, George gained enough separation from his defender and knocked down a 19-foot left-wing jumper in front of the New York bench.

Magic 119, Grizzlies 107

Center Nikola Vucevic, now in a reserve role, scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in leading the Orlando Magic to a 119-107 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies Sunday night at the Amway Centre.

The Grizzlies (41-36) lost their sixth consecutive game and 10th in their last 12 as they struggle to keep their play-off position in the Western Conference.

Jazz 101, Suns 86

Gordon Hayward scored 22 points and Derrick Favours added 17 as the Utah Jazz overcame a slow start to beat the Phoenix Suns 101-86 on Sunday.

The Jazz (39-38) stayed tied with the Dallas Mavericks, who beat the Minnesota Timberwolves Sunday, for seventh in the Western Conference play-off race. Both teams remained a game ahead of the Houston Rockets (38-39), who beat Oklahoma City on Sunday.

Mavericks 88, Timberwolves 78

The Dallas Mavericks played like a team that can smell the playoffs on Sunday, pulling away late to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 88-78.

J.J. Barea led the Mavericks with 21 points as Dallas extended its win streak to four games. Wesley Matthews had 19 and Devin Harris added 16 points off the bench as the Mavs (39-38) remained in the thick of the fight for a Western Conference playoff spot.

Rockets 118, Thunder 110

James Harden delivered on both ends of the court and the Houston Rockets defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 118-110 on Sunday at Toyota Centre to keep their postseason hopes afloat.

Harden had game high 41 points with nine assists and three steals, including one with 37 seconds left that preceded his full-court pass to Patrick Beverley, whose dunk game Houston (38-39) a 112-104 lead.

Clippers 114, Wizards 109

Blake Griffin performed like a player who missed 45 games. However, his teammates, who have grown accustomed to his absence, picked up the slack as the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Washington Wizards again.

Chris Paul scored 27 points and handed out 12 assists to spark the Clippers to a 114-109 victory over the Wizards on Sunday at Staples Centre.

Cavaliers 112, Hornets 103

LeBron James had 31 points and 12 assists and J.R. Smith matched his season high with 27 points in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 112-103 victory against the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday.

The Hornets pulled within 96-92 after the Cavs led by 21 in the first half, but Smith and Kevin Love each made key 3-pointers late in the game and the Cavs held on to strengthen their hold on the top spot in the Eastern Conference.

Pelicans 106, Nets 87

Tim Frazier had his first career double-double with 19 points and 13 assists as the New Orleans Pelicans put on a passing clinic during a 106-87 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.

After getting extensive praise from coach Alvin Gentry before the game, Frazier had the most productive game of his career. In his 10th game for the Pelicans, he made 7 of 10 shots while playing 38 minutes.

Kawhi Leonard had a career-high 33 points, while LaMarcus Aldrige had 31 points and 15 rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Toronto Raptors 102-95 Saturday night for their franchise-record 64th victory.

San Antonio never trailed and topped its 63-win season in 2005-06. The Spurs also extended their NBA-record home winning streak to start a season to 39 games.

The Spurs closed it out at the free-throw line, capturing their 48th straight home victory dating to March 2015.

Norman Powell had 17 points, Jonas Valanciunas and Cory Joseph added 16 points and Patrick Patterson had 12 points for the Raptors.

In Portland, C.J. McCollum had 24 points and made all six of his 3-point attempts to help the Trail Blazers beat Miami 110-93 for their seventh straight home win.

Despite the loss, the Heat still clinched a playoff spot after the Chicago Bulls lost to Detroit earlier in the evening. However, having come into the game tied for the third seed in the East, Miami dropped to sixth with the loss.

The Blazers made 10 3-pointers to break a franchise record for 3-pointers in a season with 808. They are in sixth place in the Western Conference and have not clinched a play-off spot yet.

Damian Lillard did not play in the fourth quarter and finished with 18 points for the Blazers. Gerald Henderson came off the bench to score 17 points.

Hassan Whiteside led the Heat with 21 points and 13 assists.

In Chicago, Reggie Jackson scored 22 points and Tobias Harris added 21 as Detroit overcame Jimmy Butler’s first career triple-double to beat the Bulls 94-90.

Marcus Morris had 16 points and Andre Drummond had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons, who remain on track for a play-off spot.

Butler had 28 points and career highs of 17 rebounds and 12 assists. Pau Gasol had 16 points and 14 rebounds.

Detroit are a half-game ahead of Indiana for seventh in the Eastern Conference and 2 1/2 games up on ninth-place Chicago.

C.J. Miles scored 25 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:39 left as Indiana rallied to beat short-handed Philadelphia, 115-102.

Paul George added 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Indiana, the eighth seed in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. Rodney Stuckey scored 17 points.

Isaiah Canaan had 24 points for Philadelphia (9-68), which need one victory in their remaining five games to avoid matching the 1972-73 Sixers for the worst full-season record in NBA history.

Rudy Gay had 25 points and nine rebounds and Seth Curry scored 17 points to help Sacramento beat Denver 115-106 to sweep the three-game season series.

Darren Collison had 14 points and eight assists and Willie Cauley-Stein and Ben McLemore scored 14 points each for Sacramento, which played without DeMarcus Cousins and Rajon Rondo.

Gary Harris led Denver with 19 points and Emmanuel Mudiay and Joffrey Lauvergne had 15 apiece.

AMMAN — Hussein Ishaiash qualified for this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Friday at the Asian and Oceania qualifying event in Qian’an, China.

The super heavyweight boxer bounced back from his semifinal defeat on Thursday to win the third place “Olympic box-off” against Iran’s Abdolmajid Sepahvandi. HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein, president of the Jordan Olympic Committee, congratulated the boxer saying:

“On behalf of the Jordanian sporting family I would like to congratulate Hussein and the Jordan Boxing Federation on this wonderful achievement. Qualifying for an Olympic Games takes years of dedication and we are proud of what has been achieved.

I hope this will inspire other Jordanians to go on and also qualify and we wish them all well in their efforts. This is a great day for Jordan sport.” 

DEAD SEA — Khaled Juma on Friday was crowned champion of the first round of the Jordan Rally Championship “Samarah Rally” held with the participation of eight drivers at the Dead Sea area.

With this win, Khaled Juma and co-driver Emad Juma added 25 precious points after clocking 47m28s in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7, followed by Salameh Qamaz and co-driver Ahmed Zeidan (50m16s) in their Mitsubishi Evo 5 and Basheer Azar and co-driver Mohammed Azarbeh (54m10s) in their Subaru Impreza.

Meanwhile, Raed Habaybeh and daughter/co-driver Marina settled for fourth place (1h45s).

Juma who reigned over all stages of the rally expressed his happiness and satisfaction with winning this season’s opener.

“It was a challenging event and at the same time a big lesson to learn before the Jordan Rally in May. The stages were exciting and very challenging and now it is time to focus on the next event,” he said.

Only five out of eight drivers reached the finish line in the event which witnessed a cancellation of the first stage (Panorama 1) due to an accident where driver Ehab Shurafa hit a sewage cover and flipped his car, but walked away uninjured.

Othman Naseef, Jordan Motorsport CEO, said: “Our main concern is the safety of everyone and that is why we decided to cancel Stage 1 in order to be safe.

“It was a very challenging event and a final rehearsal for the big event in May.”

“All preparations are set for the Jordan Rally which is expected to attract the best drivers in the region and we also hope Jordanian drivers will be able to participate and compete in this round of the Middle East Rally Championship,” he added. 

Isaiah Thomas scored all 22 of his points in the second half, including a driving lay-up with 8.3 seconds remaining, as the Boston Celtics ended the Golden State Warriors’ 54-game home winning streak with a 109-106 stunner on Friday.

The home loss was Golden State’s first since January 31, 2015, a streak that includes 36 straight wins this season.

After Harrison Barnes buried a three-pointer to get Golden State within 107-106 with 10.2 seconds to play, the Celtics called a timeout and got the ball to Thomas, who sneaked in behind the Warriors’ defence for the game-clinching hoop.

Golden State still had two opportunities to tie but Stephen Curry misfired from 28 feet and, after an offensive rebound, Barnes was not close on a desperation 24-footer, allowing Boston to snap a five-game losing streak against the Warriors.

The Warriors (68-8) retained a 4 1/2-game lead over the San Antonio Spurs in the race for top seeding in the Western Conference play-offs. Golden State had won five in a row.

The Celtics (44-32), meanwhile, kept pace with Miami (44-31) and Charlotte (44-31) in a tightly bunched battle for the third seed in the East.

Boston, which had taken the Warriors to two overtimes before losing at home on December 11, improved to 2-2 on their five-game Western swing after rebounding from a 116-109 loss at Portland on Thursday.

Evan Turner had 21 points and Jared Sullinger recorded a 20-point, 12-rebound double-double for the Celtics as Thomas led Boston in scoring for a franchise-record 15th straight time.

Curry had a game-high 29 points for Golden State, hitting eight three-pointers along the way.

Draymond Green had 16 points to go with team-highs in rebounds (nine) and assists (seven), and Klay Thompson added 15 points.

The Warriors trailed 103-96 before Thompson hit a three-pointer, Curry converted a drive and Shaun Livingston dropped in two free throws in a 7-2 run that got Golden State within two with 46.9 seconds to go.

Green then stole the ball from Boston’s Amir Johnson but after a timeout, gave it back to the same player with 23.7 seconds left, giving the Celtics an opportunity to run out the clock.

Turner made it a four-point game, 107-103, on two free throws with 18.1 seconds left but the Warriors immediately countered with the three-pointer by Barnes, closing the gap to one with still 10.2 seconds left.

After a timeout, Thomas scored off an inbounds play to increase the Boston lead to 109-106 with 8.3 seconds remaining.

The Celtics had led 84-83 in the second minute of the fourth quarter before using a 9-0 burst to open their biggest lead of the game to that point.

Reserve guard Marcus Smart converted a driving hoop and a three-pointer to cap the run.

After having scored 36 points in the third quarter, Golden State had only four to show for the first 5 1/2 minutes of the final period and was still down by 10, 95-85, before backup guard Leandro Barbosa buried a three-pointer.

Green followed with a three-point play on a drive and added a three-pointer, and when he followed in a Brandon Rush miss with 3:53 to go, the Warriors had reduced the deficit to 99-96.

But then a key sequence went in Boston’s favour, when a Warriors fast break resulted in a Rush turnover, with Thomas benefiting at the other end with a lay-up that extended the margin to five with 3:21 left.

NOTTINGHAM — Leicester City’s surge towards a first top-flight crown may spark a major power shift in England, according to players from the 1978 Nottingham Forest team that produced a similarly unexpected title triumph.

It is 38 years since Frank Clark, Garry Birtles, John McGovern and Archie Gemmill were involved in Forest’s remarkable transformation.

Having scraped promotion to the old first division in third place, they stunned the football world by winning the league in their first season back in the top flight before claiming consecutive league and European Cup title triumphs under manager Brian Clough and assistant Peter Taylor.

Leicester, five points clear of Tottenham Hotspur at the top of the Premier League with seven games remaining, are attempting to become the first side since Forest to win a maiden crown.

While they still have a long way to go to be mentioned in the same breath, City’s exploits this season have drawn inevitable comparisons.

“We were a side that came out of nowhere, won promotion, then astounded everyone by winning the league by seven points when it was still only two points for a win,” said McGovern who captained Forest to both European Cup successes.

“Like Leicester we were told we were just a flash in the pan... I am not so sure that if Leicester, or Spurs for that matter, win the title, it will be a one-off either,” added McGovern who played all 42 matches in Forest’s title-winning season.

Leicester share another similarity to the title-winning Forest side in that they have made the most of limited resources.

While squad sizes differ a lot between the two eras, so far this season Leicester have used 23 players, the joint fewest in the league. When Forest won the title they fielded 16.

“It’s fantastic that a provincial team like Leicester can be five points clear at this stage of the season,” said Gemmill who won two league titles with Clough at Derby County before landing the crown again and the first European Cup with Forest.

“I hope they go on and do it. It will be terrific for football in this country. The league needed a breath of fresh air.”

Leicester have lost three of their 31 games this season, the same amount of defeats Clough’s side suffered in their 42-game campaign.

Forest maintained their remarkable run into the following season and between November 26, 1977 and November 25, 1978, Clough’s side set a record of 42 consecutive league matches without defeat.

That record lasted until it was eclipsed by Arsenal’s “Invincibles” 26 years later.

Big money

Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal are one of only four teams, along with Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea, to have won the league since 1995.

Clark, a former Forest player and manager who won a league championship and one European Cup, said the Premier League could be set for change on the back of the new £5.14 billion ($7.40 billion) three-year TV rights deal that starts next season.

“Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea have been able to do what they have done for years because of money and resources,” Clark said.

“But the clubs below them are getting big money with the new TV deal and will be able to sign some very good players because the top clubs cannot buy them all.

“The new money will make the league less predictable because clubs like Leicester, West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City and the others will make the league more competitive with more clubs able to win it.”

A film of Forest’s rise, “I Believe in Miracles”, opened to critical acclaim in October and is being shown at Nottingham’s Theatre Royal Concert Hall on April 22 with every member of the 1979 European Cup-winning squad expected to attend.

Among them will be Birtles who said he was delighted another unfashionable side from the east Midlands was upsetting the big clubs.

“Leicester thoroughly deserve all the accolades they are getting because coach Claudio Ranieri has ripped up the coaching manual,” said the striker who embodied Forest’s team-without-stars narrative.

“Fans have become bored with the same teams winning it every season, with a certain arrogance from the bigger clubs.

“That’s why I am delighted Ranieri has said, ‘we are not playing like that, we will send it long, we will turn defenders’, and it’s taken the Premier League big boys by surprise.”

That is just what they were saying when Forest triumphed all those years ago.

Fans of Leicester, however, remember 1978 less fondly, they finished bottom that season and were relegated.