Our Purpose

The purpose of the Ontario Basketball League (OBL) is to create an inclusive, age- and ability-appropriate, province-wide league structure that promotes meaningful competition, develops sportsmanship, and focuses on athletic excellence for athletes of both genders in all age categories (U10 to U19). Ontario Basketball promotes safe and stage-appropriate athlete development according to Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD) principles.

League Summary

The league will be open to all Ontario Basketball member club teams at both genders and at all ages (U10 to U19).

League Schedule

Teams will play a total of 12 games over the course of five weekends, with two to four games per weekend. Games will tip-off at 9:00 am, 10:30 am, 12:00 pm, 1:30 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:30 pm and 6:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays (game times may vary based on facility permits).

The following are the confirmed competition weekends for each age category for the 2023-24 OBL season. Non-bolded are the scheduled 2 game weekends (on either Saturday or Sunday) and bolded are the scheduled 4 game weekends (on both Saturday and Sunday) for OBL pools.

Ontario Basketball has secured various venues across the province to host OBL games throughout the season and teams are expected to travel. If you are interested in becoming an OBL host please contact Ontario Basketball.

Age CategoryWeekend #1Weekend #2Weekend #3Weekend #4Weekend #5
Female
U10 GirlsNov 4-5Dec 2-3Jan 13-14Feb 10-11Mar 2-3
U11 GirlsNov 4-5Dec 2-3Jan 13-14Feb 10-11Mar 2-3
U12 GirlsNov 4-5Dec 2-3Jan 13-14Feb 10-11Mar 9-10
U13 GirlsNov 18-19Dec 9-10Jan 27-28Feb 17-18Mar 16-17
U14 GirlsNov 18-19Dec 9-10Jan 27-28Feb 24-25Mar 30-31
U15 GirlsDec 9-10Jan 13-14Feb 10-11Mar 16-17Apr 6-7
U16 GirlsDec 9-10Jan 13-14Feb 10-11Mar 16-17Apr 6-7
U17 GirlsDec 16-17Jan 13-14Feb 17-18Mar 23-24Apr 13-14
U19 WomenDec 16-17Jan 13-14Feb 24-25Mar 23-24Apr 13-14
Male
U10 BoysNov 4-5Dec 2-3Jan 20-21Feb 10-11Mar 2-3
U11 BoysNov 11-12Dec 2-3Jan 20-21Feb 17-18Mar 2-3
U12 BoysNov 11-12Dec 2-3Jan 20-21Feb 17-18Mar 2-3
U13 BoysNov 25-26Dec 16-17Feb 3-4Feb 24-25Mar 23-24
U14 BoysNov 25-26Dec 16-17Feb 3-4Feb 24-25Apr 6-7
U15 BoysMar 9-10Mar 23-24Mar 30-31Apr 27-28May 4-5
U16 BoysMar 9-10Mar 23-24Mar 30-31Apr 27-28May 4-5
U17 BoysMar 16-17Apr 13-14Apr 20-21May 4-5May 11-12
U19 MenMar 16-17Apr 13-14Apr 20-21May 4-5May 11-12

Locations

Ontario Basketball has secured various venues across the province to host OBL games throughout the season, teams are expected to travel.

If you are interested in hosting OBL games, please email obl@basketball.on.ca to discuss becoming an official OBL host.

Division Breakdown

When registering through RAMP Interactive, teams must select a competition level (A, AA, AAA, AAAA). After the registration deadline, pools of 7 teams are aligned prioritizing the competition level selected while also taking into consideration how teams finished at the Provincial Championships/Ontario Cup from the previous season. If a team did not participate in the Provincial Championships/Ontario Cup from the previous season, they will be aligned with teams based on the competition level selected.

We do not take into consideration off-season transactions or game results from sanctioned leagues, tournaments and exhibition results when aligning pools at the beginning of the OBL season.

When registering through RAMP please use a valid coaches’ e-mail address as that will be the primary method of communication for anything OBL related.

Schedules are released approximately 1-2 weeks prior to the competition weekend. Due to the volume of teams we cannot guarantee that accommodations can be made.

After the first 6 games, the OBL re-rank takes place where teams move up and down based on the results of the OBL season and pools are re-aligned and schedules are created for the last 6 games.

The OBL re-rank only takes into consideration OBL games. Sanctioned leagues, tournaments and exhibition game results are used towards the final rankings for Ontario Cup.

The team with the best record post re-rank are crowned Pool Champions and winning teams will be delivered medals.

Re-rank System

Like many other leagues, the Ontario Basketball League (OBL) strives to keep games as close, and as competitive as possible. In previous years, we’ve adopted a re-rank system, where teams who have been in pools that don’t match their skill level, are allocated to different pools, in order to play more competitive basketball. This year, we will be taking that a step further by adopting the basis point (BP) method – which will not only provide transparency to clubs, but ultimately aid in making more objective decisions.

To calculate a team’s basis points – we will be taking one metric into account; win and loss margins.

1,000 basis points will be allocated in total to each game based on the following

  • 1-9 point win = 600 points
  • 10-19 point win = 700 points
  • 20+ point win = 800 points
  • 1-9 point loss = 400 points
  • 10-19 point loss = 300 points
  • 20+ point loss = 200 points
  • Forfeit = score will be recorded as (2-0) for the favoured team; for more specific guidelines, refer to the Rules and Regulations manual (8.3.3)

Take a look at the example pool below.

After 3 weeks of basketball, right before the re-rank, the standings are as follows.

Now, using the results from each game, we can complete the basis point (BP) calculation.

Looking at the first game of weekend 1 – Club C beat Team B by 10 points, meaning Club C would be awarded 700 basis points, and Club B would be awarded 300.

After completing this for each matchup – the calculations are as follows.

From here, we would average the pool’s total basis points, as well as find the standard deviation, to determine if there are any outliers. (Note: Outlier cutoffs are found by adding/subtracting one unit of standard deviation to the pool average.)

Looking at this, we can objectively tell that Team B is an outlier, and to have more competitive weekends in the future – it would be best to reassign them to a lower pool.

Notice that while Team F is also an outlier, it is unlikely that they will be reassigned to a higher pool due to their number of losses. (More than one loss shows competition within the pool.)

Fees

The registration fee for OBL is $2700 (12 games). Instructions on how to register for the season can be found using the link: https://basketball.on.ca/competitions/obl/obl-registration/

Registration Deadlines

The following below is a summary of the registration deadlines.

OBL Registration Open

U15 to U19 Girls/Women Registration Deadline

November 6, 2023

U10 to U12 Girls & Boys Registration Deadline

October 6, 2023

U15 to U16 Boys Registration Deadline

February 19, 2024

U13 to U14 Girls & Boys Registration Deadline

October 20, 2023

U17 to U19 Boys/Men Registration Deadline

March 4, 2024

Please Note

Participation in the Ontario Basketball League is now mandatory for all teams hoping to participate in Provincial Championships but not mandatory to participate in the Ontario Cup.

Due to the increase in number of teams who registered for OBLX (AAAA) at some age groups, at the beginning of the season Pool A and Pool B will be designated as OBLX pools.

Post OBL re-rank, teams in OBLX (Pool A) will be eligible for Provincial Championships. Pool B winners (team with the best record post re-rank) will also be eligible for Provincial Championships.