NOT IN THE RUNNING: State Sen. David...

NOT IN THE RUNNING: State Sen. David Roberti (D-Van Nuys) declared Wednesday he would not run for the seat of retiring Los Angeles County Supervisor Ed Edelman, citing a recent poll that forecast an expensive and ugly campaign. . . . The announcement was a boost for City Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, who now becomes the clear front-runner (B1).

TARRED, FEATHERED: Imagine a hoop matchup between the Cal State Northridge Matadors and the defending national champions, the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Not pretty, said one Vegas bookie, who speculated North Carolina would be a 53-point favorite, and “I’d give the points.” CSUN (1-6), after high expectations, is suffering yet another miserable season (C10).

BACK TO HUMOR: Actor Michael J. Fox, above, cracked up the jury during his courtroom appearance Wednesday involving a suit filed by a woman who claims the master bedroom of the Studio City home she bought from him in 1990 resembled a “teen-age boy’s fantasy” of a “playboy pad.”. . . Quipped Fox: “Actually, it was a 21-year-old boy’s fantasy of a playboy life.” (B4)

HOLY CASTING! Robin is no longer a nerd, or so proclaims Hollywood. . . . This time, producers want a sexy, streetwise Boy Wonder skilled in martial arts for the role in “Batman III.” So they will hold an open audition Sunday from 10 a.m to 4 p.m. at Warner Bros. Studios, 4210 Olive Ave., in Burbank to cast the younger Caped Crusader.

THEY TOOK THE GOLD: Former Taft High School track star and Olympic medalist Quincy Watts has been a winner most of his life, but he lost his two gold medals to armed robbers who confronted relatives at his family’s Inglewood residence Tuesday night. Watts, who graduated from Taft in 1988 and captured medals in the 400-meter run and the 1,600-meter relay at the 1992 Barcelona Games, now lives in Calabasas and was not at the scene of the robbery (C1).