Shelburne senior boys’ basketball team wins District 4 championship

Written By Brian Lockhart

The Centre Dufferin District High School (CDDHS) Royals senior boys basketball team claimed the District 4 championship with a 56-35 win over the Erin District High School Raiders on home court in Shelburne on Wednesday, Feb. 15.

The Royals were undefeated in District competition for the season and finished in first place in the standings.

CDDHS dispatched Norwell District High School in their semi-final to earn the right to advance to the final.

Erin pulled off an upset win over Westside Secondary School in their semi-final for their chance in the championship game.

In the final game, the Royals took an early 17-13 lead to finish the first quarter.

By the half, they were still ahead by seven points.

The third quarter saw the Royals really turn it up and they went ahead by 14.

The Royals kept up the pressure for the rest of the game and left the court with a 56-35 win to claim the District title.

“We've got a lot of talent, we're pretty deep talent wise,” said coach Matt Barlow of the team's success. “We got it done on the defensive end. That's were we pride ourselves – if it isn't happening on offence, we can get on the defensive end. We're a young team – they're all grade 11s, and one grade 10. We have one grade 12 on the team. I think our defence has grown, our maturity has come a long way.”

The Royals senior team will now go on to compete at the regional level in CWOSSA. During the CWOSSA competition, the Royals will be up against champion teams they haven't met before, so they will only know the competition level once they meet them on the court.

“It's hard to say,” Matt said, of sizing up the competition. “You just have to play your own game.”

Centre Dufferin District High School will be hosting the senior basketball competition this year.

Games will get underway on Friday, Feb. 24, with the final games on Saturday,
Feb. 25.