Seneca Knight spearheaded a special win against Sheffield Sharks as the US star returned to Newcastle Eagles’ starting five in style.

The do-it-all guard missed the previous weekend’s loss against Leicester as he battled a bout of illness.

But Knight snagged a game high 20 points and bagged seven boards as the hosts finally snapped a five-game losing streak in the league.

Two fierce rivals lock horns again in South Yorkshire tomorrow [Sunday] as March’s mini series gathers pace.

And Newcastle head to South Yorkshire full of confidence after completing a convincing 80-67 win against Atiba Lyons’ title challengers.

“That was a really, really important win,” said Eagles’ playcaller Marc Steutel. “March has felt like a long month for sure, domestically, and we know we’ve got to try and find a way to be more consistent in the SLB.

“That’s our challenge, our battle between now and the end of the season. It was a solid game against Sheffield — I don’t think it was anything more than that.

“And that’s all we’ve been trying to put together in the last few weeks: solid, consistent games.

“I thought our smarts were generally better in terms of shot clock management and matchup attacks.

“And defensively I thought we did more of what we want to do.”

Sharks were never out of a nerve-wracking affair but every time the visitors moved to within touching distance of the men in black, Newcastle hit back.

But for a pair of loose defensive plays towards the end of the opening quarter, the Eagles would have restricted Lyons’ men to single figures in the first period.

And although the hosts couldn’t quite match that intensity throughout the half, a six-point lead at the break was all Steutel’s roster deserved.

Knight, Josh Ward-Hibbert and De’Sean Allen-Eikens anchored an impressive first 20 minutes with Mike Okauru — still feeling his way back from an ankle injury — always waiting in the wings.

“There’s intensity and then there’s applying what we’re trying to do,” added Steutel. “Sometimes indecision is a killer for defence. You play pick and roll and offences can do six, seven things while defences can do eight different schemes. That’s when it starts becoming complicated.

“So we’ve just tried to make sure that we were really consistent with what we were doing and that we kept things simple.

“Sheffield are a good team. They’re really tough to scheme for. But we did our job.”

Knight looked like he’d never been away as one of the smartest operators in the SLB displayed the poise and focus Steutel had called for pre-game.

An efficient seven from nine from the field — including a perfect four from four from beyond the arc — underpinned a measured offensive masterclass.

And time and time again Knight’s nous in the paint proved pivotal as he denied Sharks a series of second chance opportunities with seven defensive boards.

Sheffield tightened things up after the break to take the third quarter 20-18 and the visitors closed to within a point seconds into the final period.

But an Allen-Eikens bucket kept the 2025 SLB Cup winners at bay as Newcastle closed in on a significant scalp.

Elsewhere former Eagle Rickey McGill endured a frustrating night at the office as the 2024 ENBL regular season MVP converted just one of nine from the field.

And in truth it was only a typically energetic display from Prentiss Nixon that kept Sharks in contention.

The busy guard added seven boards and three assists to his 19 points in 30 minutes and Newcastle need look no further when identifying the player most likely to dash hopes of a win double this weekend.

With Prentiss on fire and McGill desperate to bounce back there’s no doubt Steutel and co. face another serious test of their top four credentials on Sunday.

But a first SLB win in six — with five Eagles players in double figures — served as a timely reminder that the 2025 Trophy winners are still a force to be reckoned heading into the business end of a memorable campaign.