It’s still early in 2009, but March Madness approaches much faster than you think. Online sports betting handicappers are already getting a good look at their brackets to try and figure out who will be slotted where, and who is on the bubble.

Although the North Carolina Tar Heels started the season as the team to beat – and the team to beat of the decade – a couple of losses have pulled them back into the pack. Unless someone loses in front of them – Duke, Wake Forest, Connecticut or Pittsburgh – they will likely be a No. 2 seed, and likely one of the best No. 2 seeds of all-time.

Duke has really grown up as a contender as most people who bet sports perceived them to be solid, but not a premier team. That has not been the case as Duke climbed to No. 1 in the nation with wins against Top 10 teams like Purdue, Georgetown and Xavier.

Online sports betting sharps are also going to take Wake Forest seriously, now that they knocked off the aforementioned Blue Devils, and are playing for keeps in the ACC. In recent years, the ACC has been Duke, North Carolina and everyone else. Now Wake – surprisingly – has made that couple into a crowd.

But the conference that everyone is eyeing is the Big East. Marquette, Louisville, Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Villanova and Syracuse figure to be in the NCAA Tournament, while it’s strange to say this, but Georgetown and Notre Dame would likely be on the outside looking in at this point.

And if the Big East is that sexy, blossoming girl, like Hayden Pannettiere, then the Pac 10 is once again like Lindsay Lohan: played out and overrated. UCLA, who was supposed to be a powerhouse, has let down online sports betting handicappers a few times this season and doesn’t look to be a real tournament threat. They are counting on too many freshmen, who aren’t able to carry the load.

The same can be said for USC, who was supposed to be led by freshmen sensation DeMarr DeRozan, but he is still finding his feet. O.J. Mayo, he is not. The one real power player in the Pac 10 is Washington State, but they don’t figure to be much of a threat to the ACC or Big East powerhouses.

While the Pac 10 is weak, the SEC is even weaker. In college football, nobody wants to face any SEC teams no matter what the situation. But in college basketball, the situation could not be more opposite. Florida, Kentucky and LSU headline the conference but nobody will really take them serious come Tournament time.

Those who bet sports are always looking for mid-majors who can make a splash and Butler, Xavier and St. Mary’s fall in that category. Especially Xavier, who has overtaken Gonzaga as the most successful mid-major program.