Bennett Koch latest name to re-sign with Sheffield Sharks

The 25-year-old from Wisconsin, in just his third year as a professional, has agreed to play the 2020-21 campaign, which will be his second at the club.

The 6ft 10in centre said: “I’m excited about coming back. I had a great overall experience in Sheffield, it’s a shame it ended the way it did. It will be great to get back and build off of the things we accomplished last season.”

Sharks saw their challenge for BBL honours curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic back in March, with the season cancelled shortly thereafter.

A start date for the forthcoming campaign is yet to be set in stone, but play is expected to commence in October. The BBL are understood to be working on the schedule with a view to releasing that in the middle of August.

That has not stopped the Sharks recruiting heavily, with Koch the fifth existing player to agree to come back to the team, following Mike Tuck, Mackey McKnight, Nicholas Lewis and Rob Marsden taking the decision to stay on.

“Everybody loves Bennett on and off the court,” said Sharks general manager Sarah Backovic. “He is another guy on our team that comes from great basketball pedigree and a basketball family.

“We were extremely happy with his performance last season and are excited to see how he develops moving forward. He has a great attitude and is exactly what we were looking for in the forward/centre slot. I’m confident he will continue to grow off the success of last season.”

Sharks have made one new signing so far, England international guard Callum Jones from BBL rivals Manchester Giants.

The 34-year-old spent eight seasons in Manchester and two years prior to that with the Worcester Wolves. He also represented England at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Backovic added: “When Callum became available, we jumped on the opportunity. He comes from a strong basketball pedigree and is a proven player in this league with loads of experience.”