The clock is ticking fast and by Sunday night we'll be down to the Final Four. Here's hoping your bracket still has some life left and enough points to survive with a chance on April 3rd. Per ESPN Bracketology statistics, almost 40% of all tournament entrants DO NOT have the exact Final Four teams remaining on their entry ticket. Who knew? Let's travel back tobacco road to that Duke-North Carolina game a few weeks ago. Did the Tar Heels throw-in that clunker second half on purpose? Hmmm.

Here's the good news. With a very Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight on tap this week, some very interesting "future bets" are on the wagering board at the most top online sportsbooks. It's strange though how they're considered "future" when the outcome is only about 10 days away. Not like predicting the World Series winner, when we'll be waiting some 180 games and seven months to know whether the Cubs repeat history.

Competitive Regions

Usually, there is one standout, traditionally indicated by the #1 seed to wrap up each region and advance toward the Final Four. At this point, maybe a -180 team to win the next two games. Not this year. According to major sportsbook BetOnline, North Carolina at a current modest +105 is the largest favorite in the South Region to get the job done. Certainly, excellent opportunities if you like Kentucky at +325 or UCLA at a very generous +275.

As we would expect, due to upsets the East Region is the most competitive wagering-wise and most interesting. Here are the current odds from BetOnline:

Baylor               +240
Florida              +200
South Carolina +500
Wisconsin        +220

What do we do here? Evidently, the oddsmakers consider South Carolina's stunning win over Duke a one-time fluke and have established them the longshot. Baylor and Florida's pre-tournament seeding make them the choices but still excellent bets at more than 2-1. Wisconsin taking down champion Villanova has many convinced they are for real by making them a solid second choice and close to a favorite as a potential Final Four candidate.

Should Wisconsin beat Florida (only +2), then they likely would be a favorite over both South Carolina and Baylor. BetOnline has that special prop on the board already. Wisconsin beating Baylor at +500 or the Badgers beating South Carolina at +500. I say "on Wisconsin".

Super Sweet Sixteen

Right NOW is the absolute best time to cash in on the immediate future to settle on who will be this year's NCAA Division I Basketball Champion. Instead of looking over a field of 64 teams (well 68), the odds for many of the remaining challengers have barely changed since the opening round. With Duke, Louisville, Villanova and a few higher seeds ousted, the remaining pack of 16 still projects some excellent value.

Remember, there was not one or two specific teams designated as obvious favorites before we got started. The money was spread around the board with North Carolina a tepid +600 favorite plus Kansas and Villanova not far behind.

Checking out the current board, Bovada offers some astonishing opportunities to cash-in considering two rounds have already been played and 52 teams eliminated. Here's a look with potential better odds available for your selected choice by shopping the list of preferred sportsbooks:

2017 NCAA Championship - Odds to Win

• Kansas            +475
• North Carolina +500
• Arizona            +650
• Gonzaga         +650
• UCLA              +900
• Kentucky       +1000
• Florida           +1200
• Baylor            +1600
• Michigan        +1600
• West Virginia +1800
• Oregon          +1800
• Wisconsin     +1800
• Purdue          +2000
• Butler             +4000
• South Carolina +50000
• Xavier           +7500

Amazing that you can still buy North Carolina at +500, where they were mostly +600 a week ago. Same with Kansas and Arizona. The main dropper is Gonzaga, who was approximately 16-1 before the tournament began, now about +650. After impressive showings, Florida now +1200, while starting at 30-1 and Wisconsin at +1800, beginning at 50-1. Without getting greedy, the main value on selecting your "pre-tournament favorite" immediately and potentially cashing in on a very nice price.

Us Against the World

BetOnline has an interesting prop that simply asks to select either one team to win it or pick the other 15 teams. In essence, one team WILL NOT win the tournament. Here's an example of a tournament favorite and one longshot.

North Carolina vs. Field
North Carolina +400
Field                 -550

West Virginia vs. Field
West Virginal +1800
Field               -3300

The smart thinking here is to bet "The Field" with a strategy of a minimal profit but very little risk. For example, if you're convinced that North Carolina is NOT going to win the tournament, wagering $550 yields a $100 return. Perhaps a better risk to put down $3,300 that West Virginia does not shock the world by winning it all to pick up 100 bucks in only about 10 days.

Overall, these are some good realistic plays to consider without thinking of them as futures at all. Remember, seven forever months of baseball season are around the corner with two long months of NBA playoffs not far behind.

Glenn Greene covers the games from a betting angle every week exclusively at OSGA.com. For weekly betting insights, inlcuding previews and picks from Glenn, click here.