BRIEFLY HOPKINS' NEXT BOUT LIKELY HEADED TO STAPLES CENTER.

Byline: Daily News Wire Services

There is a strong possibility that undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins' 20th title defense, against Howard Eastman on Feb. 19, will take place at Staples Center, a source very close to the negotiations said Thursday.

``It could be announced as early as next week,'' the source said. ``It is not a done deal until it is signed, but it looks good.''

Hopkins (45-2-1, 32 KOs), of Philadelphia, has made a record 19 middleweight title defenses. His most recent defense was a ninth-round technical knockout of Oscar De La Hoya last Sept. 18 in Las Vegas.

Both Hopkins and De La Hoya were promoted by Top Rank Inc. for that fight. But in a stunning development, Hopkins and De La Hoya last month announced that they were joining forces in a two-fold move.

Hopkins, 39, signed to fight under De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions banner. He signed another contract that made him a partner in Golden Boy, and in charge of its East Coast operations. De La Hoya, meanwhile, also severed ties with Bob Arum and Top Rank.

- Robert Morales

FOOTBALL: Southeastern Louisiana's Hal Mumme was hired by New Mexico State as its new coach. Mumme is 97-64-1 record in 14 seasons as a head coach and has taken teams to the postseason seven times.

BASKETBALL: DePaul sophomore guard Sammy Mejia, averaging 12.9 points a game, is taking a leave of absence for personal reasons, coach Dave Leitao said before the Blue Demons' home game against Rhode Island.

-- Kamarr Davis, the University of Montana's leading scorer at 11.7 points a game and its lone senior, is academically ineligible for at least the next six games, four of which are Big Sky Conference contests, coach Larry Krystkowiak said.

SOCCER: Real Madrid, languishing in fifth place in the Spanish League despite a lineup that includes Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane and David Beckham, hired Wanderley Luxemburgo as its third coach this season.

Luxemburgo replaces Mariano Garcia Remon, who had taken over from Jose Antonio Camacho just three weeks into the season. Garcia Remon will remain with the team in a management position.

-- Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney was suspended for three matches after being charged with violent conduct for pushing an opponent in the face Sunday.

WINTER SPORTS: Finland's Hannu Manninen overcame a 2-minute deficit to win his 23rd combined Nordic World Cup event, beating Germany's Ronny Ackermann by 47.6 seconds in the 15-kilometer race at Oberhof, Germany.

Ackermann leads the overall standings with 440 points, followed by Manninen at 386 and American Todd Lodwick with 240.

BASEBALL: Ken Burkhart, a former big-league pitcher and umpire who made one of the most disputed calls in World Series history, has died of emphysema in Tennessee. He was 89.

HOCKEY: Vladislav Koutsky made 38 saves to lead the Czech Republic to a 3-1 victory over the United States in the World Junior Hockey Championship in Grand Forks, N.D.

The loss dropped the Americans into third place in Group A with a 2-2 record. The U.S. team will face Sweden in the quarterfinals Saturday.