THE EASTER weekend delivered a number of standout performances in the NBL1 West Men’s competition, including a magnificent showing from import CJ Turnage.

Turnage has enjoyed a strong start to the season for the Joondalup Wolves, and continued that trend at HBF Arena Joondalup on Thursday night. He led his side to a 24-point win over the East Perth Eagles, Joondalup’s first of the season. It was the perfect way to amend for a tough Round 1 loss to the Flames.

The Wolves’ offensive output was ever-present, posting triple-digits in their first two games of the season. Dominant first and fourth quarters were the catalyst for the win, as Joondalup maintained its offensive consistency across all four periods, while East Perth found itself unable to do the same, as the home side emerged 103-79 victors.

Turnage was the main culprit from Joondalup perspective, playing to his strengths and proving an imposing presence on the match thanks to his impressive offensive ability.

Joondalup Wolves (102) def. East Perth Eagles (79)

CJ Turnage – 31 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks

Turnage brought his NBL1 Central form to the table against the Eagles, having won the Most Valuable Player award in the 2022 season.

His scoring ability is clearly still there, posting a game-high points total of 31 points in the win over East Perth.

Turnage overcame some inaccuracy from behind the arc to find his rhythm from two-point territory. Of his 14 shots made for the match, 13 came from inside the three-point line, showcasing Turnage’s preferred scoring method.

Impressively, he reached 31 points on just 23 attempts from the field, shooting 61 per cent on the match.

Despite driving to the rim frequently, he made his way to the free throw line just three times, where he made two shots. Being the team’s star recruit, he was always going to find himself on the end of plenty of defensive attention, but it seemingly had minimal effect.

As a rebounder, Turnage was the team’s prominent presence on the glass. He pulled down a team-high nine boards, including three after a Joondalup miss.

Although he had the most field goal attempts of anyone on his side, he was still a strong playmaker. Once again, he posted team-high figures in the assists column too, taking full advantage of his high usage rate to create for his teammates.

Having won the highest individual honour in the Central league last year, Turnage showed he is a contender to take out the same award, this time out west. The Wolves will be eager to keep these performances rolling, and he looks set for another big year at NBL1 level.