Helping his team to a 3-1 record through the opening weekend of the 2019 NWBL season, CJ McCarthy-Grogan has earned the Round 1 Player of the Week award.
Contributing significantly at both ends of the floor, McCarthy-Grogan had three double-doubles for the weekend and came close to a triple-double twice with an average of 28.3 points, 12.3 rebounds and 7.3 assists.
He also tallied a total of 20 steals across the four contests which helped the Sydney Metro Blue Hornets finish with a +60 edge in points off turnovers for the round.
On the opening night of the season, McCarthy-Grogan played 31 minutes off the bench as the Blue Hornets got the better of West Adelaide Thunder, 69-52.
McCarthy-Grogan had his least efficient game of the weekend offensively but still finished with 21 points, ten rebounds, eight assists and five steals.
The next day against the Red Dust Heelers, he hit 10-16 from the field and recorded 22 points with eight assists and six steals in just 18 minutes of action.
His performance was reflective of Sydney Metro who blew the Heelers away by 51 points, shooting 53% overall and forcing their opponents into 33 turnovers.
In what proved to be a battle for second spot on the ladder at the end of Round 1, the Blue Hornets came up against the Perth Wheelcats just four hours after their clash with Red Dust.
McCarthy-Grogan moved into a starting role and had four points and six boards by quarter-time but the Wheelcats got the jump on Sydney Metro as they took a double-digit lead into the first break.
The Blue Hornets closed within five points in the fourth term but the deficit proved too great to overcome despite a commanding effort from McCarthy-Grogan who had a game-high 34 points, 16 rebounds, eight assists and four steals.
Playing their fourth game in three days on Sunday, McCarthy-Grogan showed no signs of fatigue as he played the full 40 minutes to lead Sydney Metro back on the winners list against the Queensland Spinning Bullets.
In front by only two points at half-time, the Blue Hornets pulled away in a 23-7 third quarter as McCarthy-Grogan put on a masterclass with 17 points, easily out-scoring his opponents by himself, while also adding three rebounds, two assists and four steals.
He finished with a monster double-double of 39 points, 17 boards, five assists and five steals to cap off a very strong opening weekend for the 2019 season.
CJ McCarthy-Grogan Round 1 Stats: 28.3 points at 49% shooting including 11-15 (73%) free-throw shooting, 12.3 rebounds (2.5 offensive), 7.3 assists and five steals per game.
