Off the wire

FOOTBALL Bears DT arrested

Chicago Bears defensive tackle Henry Melton was charged with assault and public intoxication after refusing to leave a bar and fighting with employees in a Dallas suburb. Grapevine Police Sgt. Robert Eberling said Melton was arrested early Sunday at Chill Sports Bar after becoming belligerent. The nearly 300-pound Melton, who suffered a cut nose but declined treatment, was freed on $1,210 bond. Melton, 27, allegedly punched the manager in the face and bit his arm, Eberling said. The manager wasn’t seriously hurt. Eberling said four bar staffers restrained Melton until police arrived. Melton, a former Texas standout from Grapevine, is out for the season after tearing his left anterior cruciate ligament Sept. 22 against Pittsburgh. Bears officials and agent Jordan Woy said they were seeking more information about the incident.

Baylor will return more than 5,000 unsold Fiesta Bowl tickets from its 17,500-ticket allotment for next month’s game with Central Florida. Baylor athletic officials told the Waco Tribune-Herald that the deadline was Friday to sell the allotted tickets as the No. 6 Bears prepare for No. 15 UCF. The Fiesta Bowl is Jan. 1 in Glendale, Ariz. University of Phoenix Stadium seats 73,000. Associate athletic director Nick Joos said the school kept about 1,000 tickets, and those will be available starting Monday online and at the Bears’ ticket office. Baylor, which had to pay for all 17,500 tickets upfront, has sold about 11,000 tickets and will keep others for last-minute buyers. Joos said tickets returned to Fiesta Bowl organizers will probably be distributed to charities.

Three Texas players have been ruled academically ineligible for the Dec. 30 Alamo Bowl. Texas officials said Sunday that sophomore running back Daje Johnson, sophomore offensive tackle Kennedy Estelle and redshirt freshman running back Jalen Overstreet are out for the game. A team statement said all three players will not make the trip to San Antonio. The Longhorns (8-4) take on No. 10 Oregon (10-2) in the Alamo Bowl.

Former University of Colorado offensive lineman Alex Lewis has pleaded guilty to third-degree assault for his role in a fight in May that left an Air Force Academy cadet unconscious. The Daily Camera reported the 21-year-old, who transferred to Nebraska, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor Friday as part ofa deal with prosecutors. Four other charges were dropped, including two felony counts of second-degree assault. Boulder police arrested Lewis and Colorado quarterback Jordan Webb on May 11 after witnesses said the men were involved in a fight with 22-year-old cadet Lee Bussey. Webb, who originally was charged with second-degree assault, struck a deal in September and pleaded guilty to third-degree assault. He was sentenced to two years of probation and 20 days on a work crew.

BASKETBALL Cougars coach resigns

Houston women’s Coach Todd Buchanan has resigned for personal reasons. School officials announced his departure Saturday night. He was in his fourth year leading the Cougars, going 46-56. Houston is 4-7 this season. Assistant head coach Wade Scott, who is in his eighth season at Houston, will serve as interim head coach. Scott previously coached at Western Oklahoma State College, Clarendon College and Grayson County College.

Dwyane Wade’s proposal to Gabrielle Union turned into a family affair. When the Miami Heatstar proposed to the actress Saturday afternoon, inside the home that the couple is building, his nephew and two sons unfurled signs asking Union to marry them. Bewildered, she turned to Wade and saw him on bended knee. An 8 ½ -carat diamond sealed the deal. Wade told The Associated Press the wedding will happen this summer, probably in September. He said his oldest son and nephew knew about the plan for some time, and that he’s thrilled he was able to pull off the surprise.

SOCCER

Lawsuit filed over tickets

Brazilian prosecutors want FIFA and local World Cup organizers to pay nearly $2 million in damages for alleged ticket irregularities at a Confederations Cup venue. Prosecutors in the northeastern state of Pernambuco said organizers did not provide the services fans paid for at the Arena Pernambuco during the warm-up tournament this year, especially in relation to seating location. Many fans complained their seats were not as good as shown when they made the purchases. The unhappy fans included some who bought the most expensive tickets for the matches at the Arena Pernambuco.FIFA’s agent in tickets sales, MATCH Services, has also been included in the court action. FIFA and MATCH this month were fined more than $200,000 each by consumer rights officials because of the problems at the Arena Pernambuco.

WINTER SPORTS

White third in Grand Prix

Shaun White finished third at the U.S. Grand Prix on Sunday, putting himself in strong position to earn a spot on the U.S. team for the Olympic debut of slopestyle. White, who hurt his left ankle last week and skipped the halfpipe in Copper Mountain to focus on slopestyle, scored a 90.75 on his first run, which put him in second place. His attempt to go bigger on the second run was stymied when he fell after jumping onto the first rail on the course. Norway swept the top two spots, with Staale Sandbech (97 points) getting the victory and Torstein Horgmo finishing second (94.75). Sarka Pancochova of the Czech Republic won the women’s event. This was the second of five Olympic qualifying events; the next is in Breckenridge starting Jan. 8.

Jason Lamy Chappuis of France pulled away in the home straightaway to win a Nordic combined World Cup event Sunday in tough conditions. The ski jumping portion had to be canceled because of strong wind and pouring rain. World Cup officials used the results of a provisional jump Friday to determine the starting order of the 10-kilometer cross-country race. Chappuis used his strong finish to leave Germany’s Johannes Rydzek 0.7 seconds behind. Akito Watabe of Japan, who led for most of the race, finished third, 1.1 seconds behind. Eric Frenzel of Germany was eighth to remain in the lead overall after six of 17 events with 403 points. Watabe is second at 341 and Chappuis has 312.VOLLEYBALL

Penn State wins 6th title

Ariel Scott had 21 kills and Katie Slay added 14 to give Penn State a 3-1 victory over scrappy Wisconsin on Saturday night in Seattle for the Nittany Lions’ sixth NCAA volleyball championship. Deja McClendon’s tap over the net for match point gave second-seeded Penn State (34-3) a 25-19, 26-24, 20-25, 25-23 victory. It was the Nittany Lions’ first NCAA title since their run of four consecutive from 2007-2010. The 12th-seeded Badgers (28-10) were the lowest seed ever to make it to the final match.

HORSE RACING Hollywood Park closes

Betfair Hollywood Park closed for good Sunday, ending 75 years of racing that featured such thoroughbred stars as Seabiscuit, Triple Crown winners Citation, Seattle Slew and Affirmed, and superstar mare Zenyatta.

The track, where the first Breeders’ Cup was run in 1984, will be turned into a residential and retail development starting next year.

Hollywood Park is the second major California racetrack to close since 2008, when Bay Meadows near San Francisco was shuttered after 74 years to make way for a similar development.

The track’s future had been in question since Churchill Downs sold it to Hollywood Park Land Co. in 2005. The track’s 260-acre footprint will be turned into 3,000 housing units, including single-family townhouses and condos; 25 acres of parkland, including a 10-acre central park; and a retail and entertainment district, anchored by a movie theatre, office space and a 300-room hotel.

The track had been preparing to close for weeks, and the gift shop was cleaned out of souvenirs before closing day. Some photos of jockeys on the wall in the betting areas had already disappeared, and much of the track’s equipment - including artwork and memorabilia, tractors and restaurant equipment - will be auctioned on Jan. 24-25.

Hollywood Park opened in 1938 under the direction of movie moguls Jack and Harry Warner. Among the celebrity regulars years ago were Elizabeth Taylor, Jimmy Stewart and Bing Crosby.

Dick Van Patten, the 85-yearold actor who starred in TV’s Eight is Enough, was a longtime patron of the track and walked away a winner when his horse Tanquerray won the $50,000 third race Sunday.

Jack Van Berg, the 77-yearold Hall of Fame trainer who has raced in California for 41 years, said he will move his operations to Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs.