Niagara River Lions Clinch First Place in Eastern Conference, Advance Directly to Championship Weekend 2025
St. Catharines, ON – The Niagara River Lions have officially secured the top seed in the CEBL Eastern Conference and a direct berth to Championship Weekend 2025 (CW25) in Winnipeg. With a possible final record no worse than 14–10 and holding the tiebreaker over Ottawa, Niagara has locked in the top spot in the East.
By finishing first, the River Lions skip the first two rounds of playoffs (Eastern Conference Play In on August 14 and Eastern Conference Semi Finals on August 16) and head directly to the Eastern Conference Finals at CW25, taking place August 21–24, 2025.
The River Lions remain the only CEBL team to advance to Championship Weekend every year since the league's inaugural 2019 season, and this marks the third consecutive season that the River Lions have finished first place in the Eastern Conference.
The River Lions now shift their focus to closing out the regular season strong, with one final home game remaining —
Fan Appreciation Night on Thursday July 31 at the Meridian Centre, before finishing with a four game road trip versus Scarborough, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Calgary.
CEBL Playoff Format:
The top four teams in each conference (East and West) qualify for the playoffs. The 2nd and 3rd seeds face off in a play-in game, with the winner advancing to face the 1st seed in the Conference Final. However, the team with the best overall record in each conference bypasses this round entirely and clinches a bye to Championship Weekend, entering directly into the league semifinals alongside the Western Conference winner.
By finishing first in the East, Niagara avoids both the play-in and conference final rounds, solidifying a place as one of the league’s final four teams competing for the 2025 CEBL title.

The Niagara River Lions are one of the original six teams of the CEBL and the league's reigning champions. Playing out of Meridian Centre in downtown St. Catharines, the River Lions represent the twelve municipalities of the Niagara Region while living up to the River Lions moniker of pride and strength of community. Visit www.riverlions.ca/tickets for more information.
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