'He's in your face' - Sheffield Sharks coach Atiba Lyons hoping for more of the same from January recruit Malek Green

The 24-year-old forward from Ohio joined two weeks ago and hit the ground running with 17 points against Plymouth City Patriots and 24 against Cheshire Phoenix.

Both those games were effectively dead rubbers with Sharks having been knocked out of the BBL Trophy. But at Surrey Scorchers tonight, head coach Lyons wants to see more of the same.

"It’s what I was hoping for from Malek,” said Lyons. “It was the best case that he comes in with that type of energy, strength and athleticism.

"He knows how to score and he’s tough, and that toughness is what we'll need. His style of play is in your face but he’s going to come at you every night.”

Despite the eye-catching numbers, Lyons will not crowbar Green into his starting five. "I’ll probably stick with it to see how it develops,” he said:

“I’m not precious with starting line-ups, it’s just whatever five is best.”

The trip to Surrey is Sharks’ first league game in over a month following the break for the Trophy.

They currently sit fifth in the standings with an 11-10 (win-loss) record.

“We’ve come out of January stronger in terms of guys getting healthy, so that’s a positive,” said Lyons.

"It’s only 14 games left, so it’s a full out sprint.

"We know we have a tough road ahead of us so there’s no real let-up, every game is important and we’ll try and put the wins together.”