Charles Barkley is arrested for DUI

Former NBA star Charles Barkley was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol early Wednesday at Scottsdale, Ariz.

An officer with a task force that targets drunk driving saw Barkley run a stop sign about 1:30 a.m., Gilbert police Lt. Eric Shuhandler said. Barkley was in Scottsdale’s Old Town area, a trendy spot in the Phoenix area.

“I am disappointed that I put myself in that situation,” Barkley said. “The Scottsdale police were fantastic. I will not comment any further as it is a legal matter.”

The 45-year-old Barkley, now an NBA television commentator, failed field sobriety tests after the officer smelled alcohol on him, and he was arrested. Barkley declined to submit to a breath test but was given a blood test. The results weren’t immediately available.

Barkley was cited and released. His car was impounded and he left in a cab, Shuhandler said. Police described Barkley as cooperative, adding it is customary to release people after an arrest on suspicion of DUI.

“There was nothing unusual about how he was taken into custody,” Shuhandler said. “He was treated exactly like we treat anybody else.”

Barkley was selected one the NBA’s 50 greatest players in 1996 and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. He played 16 seasons for Philadelphia, Phoenix and Houston and was on the 1992 and 1996 Olympic teams. Barkley was an 11-time NBA All-Star and league most valuable player in 1993. He starred at Auburn and last month was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

--

BASEBALL

Cubs agree to terms with Miles

The Chicago Cubs and infielder Aaron Miles agreed to a two-year, $4.9-million contract.

The switch-hitting Miles batted .317 with four home runs and 31 runs batted in in 134 games for the St. Louis Cardinals last season.

“We expect Aaron to provide significant versatility and flexibility to our roster,” Cubs General Manager Jim Hendry said.

Last season Miles played mostly at second base with 85 appearances. He also played shortstop, third and all three outfield positions.

Shortly after they announced the agreement with Miles, the Cubs traded second baseman Mark DeRosa to the Cleveland Indians for three minor league pitchers: Jeff Stevens, Chris Archer and John Gaub.

Left-hander Mark Hendrickson signed a one-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles.

Hendrickson pitched in 36 games for the Florida Marlins last season, including 19 starts, and could compete for a spot in Baltimore’s starting rotation. The 34-year-old Hendrickson was 7-8 with a 5.45 ERA in 2008. He pitched for the Dodgers from 2006 to 2007.

--

ETC.

Canada beats U.S. in junior hockey

John Tavares scored three goals and Canada overcame an early three-goal deficit to beat the United States, 7-4, to ensure a semifinal berth in the world junior hockey championship at Ottawa, Canada.

Jordan Eberle, Zach Boychuk, Tyler Ennis and Cody Hodgson also scored for four-time defending champion Canada (4-0), down 3-0 midway through the first period in the Group A game in front of a tournament-record 20,223 fans at Scotiabank Place.

Kevin Shattenkirk, Jimmy Hayes, Jim O’Brien and Jonathan Blum scored for the United States. The Americans (3-1) will face Slovakia on Friday, with the winner advancing to play Sweden (4-0).

Canada is 26-5-3 against the United States in the event.

Earlier, Andre Petersson scored twice in Sweden’s 5-0 win over Russia, and the Czech Republic beat Kazakhstan, 10-2. Kazakhstan was outscored, 46-2, in its four losses.

Denkaosan Kaovichit of Thailand knocked out Takefumi Sakata of Japan in the second round to win the World Boxing Assn. flyweight title at Tokyo.