De’Sean Allen-Eikens admits the transition from standout US college star to Newcastle Eagles starter hasn’t been easy…

…but the all-action rookie is relishing the chance to do more for the men in black following a colourful start to his professional career.

Dynamic forward Allen-Eikens brings the X factor to Marc Steutel’s remodelled roster as an undersized scorer with energy to burn.

And ahead of the Sunday afternoon regular season opener at cross-border rivals Caledonia Gladiators, the 24-year-old delivered a bullish message to Newcastle’s Super League Basketball rivals.

“Honestly, I can do better,” insisted a player forging a big reputation for getting the job done down the stretch.

“These first few weeks I’ve been figuring things out and it’s not an easy transition for rookies in any league.

“Coach Steutel is trying to teach all of us new guys the right things and he’s made it clear the defence is non-negotiable.

“I really like that culture and the messages that he’s pushing so I’m just trying to develop my game with that in mind.

“I’m loving the challenge but I know I can do more.”

Allen-Eikens has hit the ground running for Newcastle after averaging 13 points, five rebounds and two assists per game in the SLB Trophy.

And the Cal State University Northridge product has only failed to hit double figures once in domestic action this season.

But Allen-Eikens knows the Gladiators will be thirsting for revenge at the PlaySport Arena following double defeat to the Eagles last month.

“It’s tough to beat any team three times and the time after that is going to be even tougher but that’s our target,” he added.

“We have to approach every game for what it is but there’s a lot on the line as we start the regular season.

“They won’t want to lose to us again on their homecourt and we’re ready for a reaction.

“Gladiators play more of a European style of basketball — they have a lot of length and they’re really in control of their sets.”

Newcastle are looking to bounce back north of the border after a short-handed Eagles let slip the chance to beat Manchester on Friday.

The visitors raced into a 19-point lead before the hosts pulled it back to within two points just 90 seconds from time.

But a series of erratic calls tipped Steutel over the edge — a double technical saw Newcastle’s playcaller thrown out of a surprisingly feisty dead rubber before Manchester closed out a scrappy 89-77 win.

“We were down four, I split my free throws, there was an eight second call that wasn’t called and coach got thrown out — that was the game,” added Allen-Eikens.

“Referees’ calls are just part of the game and you’ve just got to keep moving.

“At the end of the day we went down 19 points to a team we shouldn’t be going 19 down to.

“It didn’t matter to us that there was nothing riding on that one. We want to win every game. We never want to walk out of our arena with a loss.

“We’re disappointed that happened but we’ll regroup and go again.”

Newcastle were missing veteran trio Darius Defoe, Will Neighbour and the in-form Josh Ward-Hibbert on Friday as a fired-up Manchester sensed an opportunity.

And Allen-Eikens added: “Put those guys into the team and there’s no doubt we would have won.

“Josh and Darius are the leaders of this group. That’s who we’ve looked to from day one to get us going.”

Ward-Hibbert is set to return against the Gladiators but an achilles injury could sideline Defoe for several weeks.

British Basketball’s most decorated player may not feature again before Christmas with club bosses targeting a new big man to plug the gap.

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