PODCAST · news
Inside the Arc
by Alec Busse
Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg dive into discussions surrounding the latest news around Illinois Fighting Illini basketball with engaging conversations with guests ranging from former players to local and national media members. Inside the Arc can be streamed on all podcast streaming platforms.
Episodes
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Ep. 69 Shooting it with Sleepers Media's Greg Waddell
Alec and Brandon are joined by Sleepers Media's Greg Waddell (@GWizzy12) to dive through the dog days of college basketball's offseason to discuss the rise of Sleeper's Media and how it became one of the most listened to podcasts in Big Ten country before talking about the budding rivalry between...
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Ep. 68 B1G Tiers, 24 second shot clock, a Draft of Champaign eateries
In episode 68 of Inside the Arc, Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg look ahead to what the Big Ten is going to look like in the next five years by ranking all 16 programs into five different tiers. The top tier includes perennial conference title contenders and the bottom group is some familiar faces...
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Ep. 67 Late summer update on recruiting, roster nuggets and the nonconference schedule
Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg are back for Ep. 67 of Inside the Arc. With the Illini's nonconference schedule finalized heading into the 2022-23 season, they each share their thoughts on the opponents and who they think is the most exciting matchups. How many wins do the Illini have banked on...
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Ep. 66 Analyzing Sim's NBA Draft Big Board, Draft Night Suits and what is best for Kofi Cockburn
Alec and Brandon talk about the NBA Draft while analyzing why Auburn's Jabari Smith Jr. is atop Brandon's Draft Big Board and why Duke's Paolo Banchero and Purdue's Jaden Ivey are both higher than Gonzaga freshman Chet Holmgren. Later, they talk about various Big Ten prospects including…
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Ep. 65 May Day
Alec and Sim are back after a long break to discuss the major addition of Baylor transfer Matthew Mayer to the 2022-23 Illini roster. The two breakdown what Mayer's addition means for Illinois, how he fits the rotations and if the Illini could add another transfer this offseason. Finally, the two...
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Ep. 64 It's that ZZ
Alec and Brandon talk about the impact of 2024 prospect ZZ Clark committing to the Illini, and how much credit Tim Anderson deserves for landing both Clark brothers in addition to Ty Rodgers and Morez Johnson. Later in the show, the conversation shifts to the impending decision of Kofi Cockburn…
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Ep. 63 A Five Star Commits, Portal Stars and Sim Sneezes
Alec and Sim react to the news of Skyy Clark committing to the Illini, which gives the Illini one of the best-recruiting classes in the entire country. Find out what the impact of Clark's decision to join the Illini means for the rest of the Illini offseason - and who else the Cardinals could...
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Ep. 62 Kam Cox on NIL nearly a year into this wild world
Alec flys solo on this edition of Inside the Arc, and welcomes on Kam Cox. Cox is the director of Illinois' NIL department and oversees just about all things related to NIL and Illinois sports. Alec is able to ask Cox several questions related to NIL, including the effects that he thinks it has…
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Ep. 61 Changes Need to be Made
Alec and Brandon talk about some of the big pictures issues that led to the demise of the 2022 Fighting Illini and what changes need to be made for Illinois to have a deeper run in the NCAA Tournament next season. They also define whether or not this season was a success for Illinois despite...
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Ep. 60 Mocking the Mocks
Alec and Brandon react to the NCAA Tournament field and preview what should be a really interesting matchup with Chattanooga in the Round of 64 for the No. 4 seeded Fighting Illini. Find out some of the other interesting matchups along with who could be making a run from the Big Ten in Ep. 60 of...
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Ep. 57 Happy March
Alec and Brandon talk about the Illini's 1-1 week with Ohio State and Michigan with a deep dive into some of the real positives from the two games and some things that are still raising concern for Illinois as the postseason quickly looms. Before the end of the show, Sim gives his Pac-12 update…
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Ep. 59 Bracketology with Mike DeCourcy and B1G Tournament Picks
Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg are joined by Mike DeCourcy, FOX Sports lead Bracketologist and regular studio guest for Big Ten Network along and columnist for the Sporting News to talk about all things Bracketology. Find out where DeCourcy has the Illini seeded, what their seeding ceiling is and...
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Ep. 58 The Champ is Here
Alec and Brandon talk all about the Illini's Big Ten Championship winning victory over Iowa on Sunday night. They talk about what they remember and what they experienced when the court was stormed by Orange Krush along with a discussion into some of the x's and o's of the 74-72 victory. Later in...
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Ep. 56 Alec was wrong, Sim was right
Alec and Sim breakdown the Illini's loss to Purdue, something that Sim was adamant would happen. What kind of major takeaways do the guys have from the disappointing loss and is RJ Melendez solidifying himself as an important role player? How many more games can the Illini lose in conference play...
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Ep. 55 Cross Roads Road Trip
Alec and Brandon recap the Illini's impressive road victory over Indiana at Assembly Hall to start the show before later getting into a preview of Illinois at Purdue game - a matchup that the two have a rare disagreement on. Find out who thinks Purdue is good enough to overcome their poor…
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Ep. 54 It's Real Now
Alec and Brandon are back to preview Illini's primetime matchup with No. 11 Wisconsin at State Farm Center on Wednesday night. Who needs to play the best for the Illin? Who guards player of the year candidate Johnny Davis? Who is the biggest wild card for the Illini and what can that player do…
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Ep. 53 It's about to get real
Alec and Brandon reveal their biggest takeaways from the Illini's 2-1 stretch with wins over Michigan State and Northwestern and loss to Maryland. They talk about what the impact of the freshman could be with a tough month of February coming on the horizon before introducing a new segment at the...
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Ep. 52 Beloing in Defeat
Alec and Brandon recap the Illini's loss to Purdue including the return of Andre Curbelo from injury and what it means for Illinois in the long term and how the backcourt situation is going to play out later in the season. At the end of the show, there is a conversation about who is the best team...
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Ep. 51 Ant Invasion!
Alec and Brandon are joined by the one and only Ant Wright to talk about the storylines and where they come from before the Illini vs. Michigan game on Friday night. Later in the show, the conversation shifts towards what has gone wrong for the 7-6 Wolverines this season and whether or not Wright...
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Ep. 50 Two wins and a diagnosis of the B1G
Alec and Brandon do a brief recap of the Illini's wins vs. Minnesota and Maryland coming out of their 13-day pause, due to 10 positive COVID-19 tests within the team. After discussing the two wins, the conversation shifts to what has made Wisconsin's Johnny Davis so good this season and the rest…
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Ep. 49 Goodby Marlee Wierda, Happy New Year!
Alec and Brandon are joined by Marlee Wierda, formerly of WCIA in Champaign to relive some of her favorite memories of her time in Champaign covering Illinois football and men's basketball before she moves up the chain to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she will have the ability to cover an…
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Ep. 48 Remembering the '01 and '02 teams with Sean Harrington
Two time Big Ten Champion Sean Harrington joins Alec and Brandon to remember the back-to-back B1G Championships.
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Ep 47: Arizona's Impressive Showing
Alec and Brandon discuss the Illini's 83-79 loss to No. 11 Arizona on Saturday night at State Farm Center. Later in the show, Alec and Sim are joined by Kevin Sweeney of Sports Illustrated for further discussion of the game and some brief big picture things in college basketball.
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Ep. 46 Time to buy Illini stock again?
Alec and Brandon recap the Illini's impressive road win at Iowa from Monday night before looking at the Big Ten from a big picture with a fun game or buy, sell or hold on several of the team's in the conference.
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Ep. 45 Nothing is going right
Alec and Brandon talk about all the health issues that are facing the Illini early in the season, the way the Illini have played in their last three games against Cincinnati, Kansas State and UTRGV, and then spend a short amount of time previewing Notre Dame and talk about the latest recruiting win.
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Ep. 44 Marquette Misery
Alec and Brandon talk about the Illini's disappointing 67-66 loss to Marquette.
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Ep. 43 Kofi's suspension and exhibition recap
On Ep. 43 of Inside the Arc, Alec and Brandon talk about Kofi Cockburn's three-game suspension for selling apparel on the Player's Trunk and recap what they saw in Illinois' two exhibitions games.
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Ep. 42 Robbie Hummel
Alec and Brandon are joined by Robbie Hummel of the Field of 68 media network, ESPN and Big Ten Network. Not to mention, an all-time great at Purdue. The three breakdowns the top-half of the Big Ten including Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Maryland, Michigan, Purdue, Michigan State and Rutgers....
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Ep. 41. Practice is Here!
Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg are joined by James Boyd of the Herald and Review to talk about what they are most excited about heading into Illinois basketball's media day on Friday, Oct. 1. Topics of conversation include the starting five, who replaces Ayo Dosunmu's presence on the court and in...
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Ep. 40 B1G Schedule Release Party
The Big Ten released their conference basketball schedule on Wednesday, so Brandon SImberg and Alec Busse break down the Illini's conference schedule from marquee matchups to trap games and everything in between. At the end of the show, they give their record prediction for the conference schedule.
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Ep. 39 Ayo's summer league & non-con breakdown
Alec and Brandon talk about Ayo Dosunmu's Summer League Performance with the Bulls and then break down the nonconference schedule release.
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Ep. 38 Recapping the '21 Draft
Alec and Brandon recap the 2021 NBA Draft from an Illini perspective while giving their opinions on Ayo Dosunmu's landing spot with the Chicago Bulls and Giorgi Bezhanishvili's landing with the Denver Nuggets on a summer league contract.
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Ep. 37 🚨 EMERGENCY 🚨 Kofi Cockburn is back for a junior season
Alec and Brandon give their instant reaction to the breaking news of Kofi Cockburn returning to Illinois for a junior season. The two break down what it means for the Illini, their Big Ten chances and how this impacts the national scene of college basketball along with a discussion into what...
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Ep. 36 EMERGENCY Kofi Cockburn is in the transfer portal
Alec and Brandon break down all the angles of Kofi Cockurn's shocking decision to enter the transfer portal.
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Ep. 35 Sim's hour to Shine
Alec and Brandon talk deep about Brandon's time at the NBA Combine and Richwoods High School for the live period. Sim gives deep breakdown into both Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn's NBA Draft prospects as well as other players from the Big Ten and the country before moving on to talk about some of...
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Ep. 34 Neel Ganta - The Brain of Illini Hoops
Alec and Brandon are joined by Neel Ganta in this edition of Inside the Arc to learn more about the analytical influence Ganta has had on Illini basketball in the last two years from defensive adjustments to lineups and different rotations.
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Ep. 33 Emergency Assistant Coaching Podcast
Alec and Brandon react to the breaking news of Illinois' hiring of Chester Frazier to fill one of the voids left by Orlando Antigua and Chin Coleman both moving to assistant roles at Kentucky. Later in the show, Alec and Sim are joined by Orange and Blue News Illinois basketball insider Jeff…
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Ep. 32 The State of College Basketball with Deon Thomas
Alec and Brandon are joined by former Illini Deon Thomas to dive into a conversation about the dynamics of college basketball with the transfer portal, NIL, the coaching carousel and the one-and-done rule/G-League option for highly recruited high school players.
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Ep. 31 Jeremy Woo
Alec and Brandon are joined by Sports Illustrated NBA Draft analyst Jeremy Woo to discuss the draft prospects of Ayo Dosunmu and Kofi Cockburn and other players from around the Big Ten. Before the interview, Alec and Brandon discuss the addition of Alfonso Plummer, and what that means for the...
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Ep. 30 Mask(less) Dos
Alec and Brandon are joined by Ayo Dosunmu to discuss his Illini career, his NBA Draft preparation and give him an opportunity to say one final thing to Illini fans. After the interview, the guys break down what Brandin Podziemski's commitment to Illinois means for the future of the Illini…
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Ep. 29 Emergency Pod: Adam Miller enters the Transfer Portal
Alec and Sim kick off season two of Inside the Arc with a conversation of Adam Miller's decision to enter the transfer portal.
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Ep. 28 The First Last One
In the final episode of the first season of Inside the Arc, Alec and Brandon break down what went wrong in the Illini's loss to Loyola-Chicago in the Round of 32, talk offseason storylines and rank the five best moments of the season. Stay tuned for the end when Brandon and Alec preview what…
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Ep. 27 The Lion is Roaring
Alec and Brandon are joined by Robert Rosenthal, the publisher of IlliniBoard, to better understand what Illinois locking up a one seed and winning the Big Ten Tournament Championship. Robert also gives his Mt. Rushmore of Illinois basketball players and talks about what his ideal situation for...
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Ep. 26 "Amazing"
Alec and Sim briefly recap Illinois' Big Ten Tournament Championship game win and preview the NCAA Tournament.
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Ep. 25 B1G Words with Brendan Quinn
Alec and Brandon are joined by the Athletic's Brendan Quinn to discuss the Illinois and Michigan beef and the Big Ten Tournament in the 25th episode of Inside the Arc.
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Ep. 24 The "One" Week
Alec and Brandon are joined by recurring guest Mike LaTulip to recap the Illini's memorable week, which included two road wins over No. 2 Michigan and No. 7 Ohio State. The three also look back on the Illini's season in a holistic view, talk Big Ten Tournament and have one final debate on Big Ten...
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Ep. 23 Driving the (Joey) Lane Pt. 2
Alec and Brandon are happy to be joined by Joey Lane for the second time to preview the Illini's matchup with Ohio State on Saturday.
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Ep. 22 All Piped Up
Alec and Brandon are joined by Illini Inquirer's lead basketball reporter Derek Piper to breakdown a hectic week in Illini hoops, talk recruiting targets, transfer portal targets and how much fun it has been to cover this Illinois basketball season.
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Ep. 21 Things are Peachy with Meacham
Illinois basketball has won seven-straight games, so Alec and Brandon called up former Illini Trent Meacham to discover what he thinks the ceiling is for this Illinois team, breakdown the positives and negative moments during the win streak and he shares stories of Micahel Jordan watching his...
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Ep. 20 Trotting to Minnesota
Alec and Brandon are joined by Isaac Trotter of the Post Bulletin to preview the Illinois at Minnesota game on Saturday. The three also make their case for their first-team All-Big Ten members, the Ayo Dosunmu vs. Luka Garza Player of the Year debate and potential Big Ten cinderella's come March...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg dive into discussions surrounding the latest news around Illinois Fighting Illini basketball with engaging conversations with guests ranging from former players to local and national media members. Inside the Arc can be streamed on all podcast streaming platforms.
HOSTED BY
Alec Busse
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Inside the Arc have?
Inside the Arc currently has 69 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Inside the Arc about?
Alec Busse and Brandon Simberg dive into discussions surrounding the latest news around Illinois Fighting Illini basketball with engaging conversations with guests ranging from former players to local and national media members. Inside the Arc can be streamed on all podcast streaming platforms.
How often does Inside the Arc release new episodes?
Inside the Arc has 69 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Inside the Arc?
You can listen to Inside the Arc on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Inside the Arc?
Inside the Arc is created and hosted by Alec Busse.
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