in brief

COLLEGES

Alford had options, decided
to stick with New Mexico

New Mexico basketball coach Steve Alford said he had opportunities to leave this spring after the most successful season in school history.

Forget it. He wants to be a Lobo.

"My agent got several calls," Alford said Tuesday at a news conference. "But if you talked to my agent, he'd tell you that I told him not to return any calls."

Alford agreed to terms on a contract extension in April but because of schedule conflicts wasn't able to sign the deal until this month. It runs through 2020 and will boost his total compensation to $1,149,200 over the next year, an increase of $145,000.

Also: Notre Dame basketball coach Mike Brey will wait to deal with the arrests of Tim Abromaitis and Eric Atkins on charges of underage drinking.

"It's handled downtown (by the police). It's handled by Student Affairs, and then the old coach will handle it," Brey said.

Abromaitis, the Irish's second-leading scorer last season, and Atkins, an incoming freshman, were among 44 people arrested Friday night after police responded to a call about a fight and discovered a party, authorities said.

Quarterback Nate Montana, the son of former Irish and NFL star Joe Montana, and seven other football players were among the 11 athletes arrested.

Washington dismissed starting tight end Kavario Middleton for a violation of team rules, less than two weeks before the Huskies begin fall camp.

Washington coach Steve Sarkisian did not specify what Middleton did. The school said there would be no further comment.

California is losing one of its top recruits for the upcoming season after linebacker Chris Martin decided to transfer.

Coach Jeff Tedford announced Martin's decision. Martin was ranked the top outside linebacker by Scout.com, recording 11 sacks and forcing five fumbles last season.

Martin is an Oakland native who finished his high school career in Aurora, Colo. He said he decided to transfer because there are too many distractions for him in the Bay Area.

SOCCER

More disgrace: French stars
charged in prostitution scandal

A French judge issued preliminary charges against soccer stars Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema for soliciting an underage prostitute -- the latest setback for a national team that returned from the World Cup in disgrace and disarray.

Ribery and Benzema were questioned in Paris as part of a probe into a suspected network of prostitutes that operated out of a nightclub on Paris' glitzy Champs-Elysees, a judicial official told The Associated Press. She was not authorized to be publicly named, according to office policy.

The scandal, which broke before the World Cup began June 11 and has been front-page news in France, includes allegations by a self-described escort girl who says Ribery flew her to visit him as a birthday present to himself when she was still under 18.

Ribery, married with two children, and Benzema have denied any wrongdoing.

Also: Germany coach Joachim Loew agreed to a two-year contract extension and will stay on through the 2012 European Championship in Poland and Ukraine.

Loew led Germany's young team to a third-place finish at the World Cup in South Africa this month.

The state-run Argentine news agency Telam is reporting Diego Maradona will remain as coach of the national team, a decision he is expected to announce next week after meeting with Argentine Football Association president Julio Grondona.

MISCELLANEOUS

British Open's final round
garners record-low rating

Little drama and a little-known champion sent the British Open's television ratings plummeting to a record low.

South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen led over the last 48 holes and won by seven shots, his victory almost never in doubt during the final round. ESPN said Sunday's coverage drew a 2.1 rating, down 45 percent from last year's 3.8. The previous low was a 3.1 in 1996, according to Nielsen, when Tom Lehman went into the final round with a six-shot lead.

Average ratings for the first three rounds were up from 2009, increasing from 1.3 to 1.4.

Also: Mark O'Meara withdrew from the Senior British Open at Carnoustie, Scotland, following the death of his father, Bob, at age 81.

O'Meara, a two-time major winner, cut short his two-week visit to Scotland to fly home to Florida.

Top-ranked Serena Williams is hoping to recover from a right foot injury in time to play at the U.S. Open, the agent for the 13-time Grand Slam singles champion said.

"Right now, we're taking it a day at a time. She's resting and recovering," agent Jill Smoller said in a telephone interview. "She's a fast healer."