Newcastle Eagles vs Dziki Warszawa marks the European curtain raiser for the British outfit.

It has been a difficult week for the men in black and white, losing both games over the weekend to the Leicester Riders and the Cheshire Phoenix while on the road.

However, there’s no rest in the professional game as two days on from the loss against the north-western side, they return to the Vertu Motors Arena to host a familiar opponent.

For Marc Steutel’s roster, this is a chance to redefine early-season momentum where Newcastle made history a matter of months ago.

Reset and Review

Sunday’s narrow loss to Cheshire showed signs of improvement from the performance against Leicester last Friday.

Mitch Clarke showed poise when conducting the offence, Emmanuel Kanwei imposed his authority off the bench, and Deion Hammond’s debut added some much-needed perimeter balance that was missing from Steutel’s rotation.

Now the challenge has shifted from the familiar venues of SLB clubs to the tactical grind of European Basketball.

What to expect from Dziki Warszawa

The last time Newcastle faced Dziki was in the 2024-25 ENBL semi-final, where Newcastle booked their ticket to their first European final.

They beat Dziki 80-67, but the top-flight Polish side has changed quite a bit since last season, with three key players I’ve identified who’ll cause the most issues.

Last season’s assist leader for Inter Bratislava in the Slovakian Tipos SBL, Dontay Caruthers, has joined the Polish side and has quickly found his feet, averaging 7.3 assists and 13 points per game.

They also have Landrius Horton in their ranks, who came from Cyprus, a scoring-heavy guard averaging 17.7 points, who must be schemed against to mitigate his scoring firepower.

Their new Polish acquisition, Lukasz Frackiewicz, has bedded in well and made an impact immediately, with averages of 8.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists, a multifaceted problem for the Newcastle frontcourt to deal with, which may end up being the key battle on court.

Keys to Victory

For the Newcastle Eagles, composure and ball security will be vital if they want to overcome their recent offensive frustrations, with the club averaging 12.8 turnovers per game. Maintaining offensive discipline through ball handlers Raysean Taylor and Mitch Clarke will be crucial.

Furthermore, this will be young British centre Emmanuel Kanwei’s biggest test of the season when matched up with Frackiewicz, but it is also the perfect proving ground to showcase his ability to finish through contact.

His stint off the bench on Sunday against Cheshire, where he put up 16 points and four rebounds, gave the Eagles a much-needed physical presence against a side that has talented bigs in Skyler White and Frankie Policelli.

Deion Hammond will also play a critical role as his perimeter threat will help to stretch the Polish defence, opening up driving lanes for Raysean Taylor, Maceo Jack and Cole Long.

After a demanding domestic weekend, the challenge for Steutel’s side is equally mental and tactical.

If they can manage to sustain the bursts of quality over 40 minutes, they give themselves every chance to regain much-needed momentum.