UPDATE: Perth Wildcats centre Matt Knight will return to bolster the front court in tonight’s clash with title contenders Townsville at Challenge Stadium.

Knight, the Wildcats’ first-choice big man, has endured a horror run with injury and played just 65 per cent of games since joining the WA club last season.

The 26-year-old spent the past fortnight on the sidelines nursing a strained calf after suffering his latest setback during a training session.

But his inclusion for tonight’s game is a major boost for the Wildcats, who will have to limit the impact of Townsville bigs Luke Schenscher, Jacob Holmes and Elvin Mimms if they are to record a sixth successive victory for the first time since Rob Beveridge took over from Conner Henry as coach in 2009.

Schenscher, who won a championship with the Wildcats in 2010 before being named club MVP for Townsville last season, has been a key figure for the Crocs since returning from a hip injury last month.

“We’ve got to make him play the whole game,” Beveridge said.

“If you just try and shut him down offensively, that doesn’t work all the time, so it’s important that we make him play defence.

“If we can play an up-tempo game and make him run up and down, that will help us for sure.”

Beveridge admitted the Wildcats let themselves down by not being mentally prepared for last week’s game against Sydney, but said they had learnt their lesson after escaping with a narrow win.

Kings forward Graeme Dann missed a pair of free throws in the dying stages to let the Wildcats off the hook.

“We’ve been really after our players about being focused,” Beveridge said. “Last week we let our guard down a bit, but did enough to get over the line.

“That won’t happen against Townsville. They’re in third spot, we’re in second and they’re one game behind, so we must win this game.”

Little separates Perth and Townsville, who are both aiming to secure a place in the top two and earn home court advantage for the semifinals.

The Wildcats have already beaten Townsville twice on the road this season — including a 21-point hammering on New Year’s Eve — but co-captain Brad Robbins said the Crocs had been sneaking under the radar.

“They’ve been a very solid team all year and we’re expecting a very close game, a very gruelling game,” Robbins said.

“They’re not a team that’s going to come over here and just give us the game.

“They’ve got guys like Mimms who can really cause trouble and Holmes has been playing well. Peter Crawford can really go off and he’s having probably the best year of his career.”