Nov. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Jimmy Connors, an eight-time Grand Slam tennis champion, was arrested late yesterday outside the arena where the University of California Santa Barbara basketball team was playing North Carolina.

Connors was taken into custody prior to the game after refusing to comply with an order to leave an area near the entrance of the Thunderdome arena, campus police said in a statement, without giving additional details.

Connors, 56, issued a statement thorough his business manager Karen Scott Happer saying he was picking up tickets for the game with his son Brett when he was twice confronted by a man who made derogatory comments and physical contact.

An altercation ensued and when campus police arrived, they told Connors to leave the campus.

“Jimmy said he wanted to stay and wait for his son to watch the game, and as a result was taken into custody,” the statement said. “Police told Jimmy that he was being taken into custody for ‘being a non-student refusing to leave the campus.’ Jimmy is extremely disappointed and embarrassed about the way the situation was handled.”

Connors won 109 singles titles during a 20-year career and was ranked No. 1 in the world three times, including a three- year run from 1974 to 1977. He retired from the ATP Tour in 1991. In March, Connors quit as coach for Andy Roddick after the two worked together for 19 months.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bob Bensch in London at bbensch@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 22, 2008 18:56 EST