3-in-1 Podcast

In another addition of the Sunday Fast Break, Marlee Wierda and former Illini Trent Mecham talk positives following the 79-65 Penn State victory, and break down why Illinois was able to succeed. With the Hawkeyes coming to town next, they preview one of the most anticipated matchups of the season, and where the Illini stack up against the dominant big man Luka Garza.

CHAMPAIGN (WCIA) In episode 50 of the WCIA 3-in-1 Podcast, Bret Beherns and Marlee Wierda breakdown Friday's big news that all sports in Illinois are now able to compete. Gov. Pritzker and IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike made the surprise announcement after putting all sports on pause due to COVID-19 on Nov. 20.

Illinois Basketball hasn't beaten a ranked team since early-December, and after suffered two straight upsets in Big Ten play, it begs the question -- 'are the Illini really all that?' Marlee Wierda welcomes in analyst and former Illini Trent Meacham to the studio to break down the 87-81 loss to Ohio State. Between a lackluster performance from Illinois' veterans, and domination from Buckeye's forward EJ Liddell, they discuss it all on the Sunday Fast Break.

In episode 48 of the WCIA 3-in-1 Pod: Bret Beherns, Marlee Wierda and Andy Olson breakdown and try to explain Gov. Pritzker and the IDPH's new COVID-19 mitigation and guidance, pertaining to youth and high school sports.

In episode 47 of the WCIA 3-in-1 Pod: Illinois basketball suffered their first loss at the State Farm Center after getting upset by Maryland in a 66-63 loss. WCIA 3's Marlee Wierda and Andy Olson react to the loss, and break down where it all went wrong. Hear from Brad Underwood and Ayo Dosunmu, plus reaction from our analyst and former Illini Trent Meacham. The Illini now fall to 5-2 in Big Ten play, but have a chance to turn things around against Nebraska next week.

In episode 46 of the WCIA 3-in-1 Pod, Bret Beherns and Andy Olson react to Illinois basketball's win at Northwestern. The Illini trailed 43-28 at halftime but outscored the Wildcats 53-13 in the second half to win convincingly. Andy was at Welsh-Ryan Arena and explains what he saw and how the Illini completely flipped the script.

In episode 45 of the WCIA 3-in-1 Pod, six area coaches join WCIA 3 Sports Director Bret Beherns for a virtual roundtable discussion on high school sports in 2021. All sports are on hold right now due to Tier 3 mitigations from Gov. Pritzker's office and IDPH. Danville boys' basketball coach Durrell Robinson, Tuscola football coach Andy Romine, Effingham football coach Brett Hefner, Mahomet-Seymour baseball coach Nic DiFilippo, St. Joseph-Ogden softball coach Larry Sparks and Monticello Athletic Director Dan Sheehan join the conversation in this digital only video.

New year, new segment. Marlee Wierda welcomes in former Illini Trent Meacham to the studio to debut the 'Sunday Fast Break', our new segment dedicated to breaking down the Illinois Basketball this season. Marlee and Trent kick-off the New Year by wrapping up Illinois' first win of 2021. The 66-58 win against Purdue was Illinois' third-straight conference win, and they break down Ayo Dosunmu's 'slow night', Andre Curbelo's off-the-bench production, and more. 

In episode 43 of the WCIA 3-in-1 Pod, Bret Beherns, Marlee Wierda and Andy Olson wrap up the year with the final recording of 2020. From starting the pod one week after the sports world shut down, to now looking forward to a better 2021, they take a look back and also ahead to what's next. Thanks to everyone for listening!

In episode 42 of the WICA 3-in-1 Pod, our final Sunday No Huddle segment of the football season. It comes with no surprise that the game wasn't talked about much. Marlee Wierda and Robert Rosenthal dive into the new hire, as Bret Bielema takes over as the head coach of the Illinois Football program. Robert was the only local media member covering the Illinois-Penn State game on Saturday night, and had a chance to speak with Bielema one-on-one. They also chat (breifly) about the game, and what the future of the program looks like.