1941–42 Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons season

{{NBA roster header|team= 1941–42 Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons {{NBA roster footer Note: James Hilgemann was not a part of the playoff roster this season (likely due to him being enlisted in the U.S. military with World War II starting to take effect for the U.S.A. during this season). ==Regular season==

NBL Schedule Not to be confused with exhibition or other non-NBL scheduled games that did not count towards Fort Wayne's official NBL record for this season. Season standings ==Playoffs==

Semifinals (2) Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons vs. (3) Akron Goodyear Wingfoots: Fort Wayne wins series 2–1 • Game 1: February 27, 1942 @ Akron: Akron 46, Fort Wayne 30 • Game 2: March 1, 1942 @ Fort Wayne: Fort Wayne 51, Akron 48 • Game 3: March 2, 1942 @ Fort Wayne: Fort Wayne 49, Akron 43 NBL Championship (2) Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons vs. (1) Oshkosh All-Stars: Oshkosh wins series 2–1 • Game 1: March 4, 1942 @ Fort Wayne: Fort Wayne 61, Oshkosh 43 • Game 2: March 5, 1942 @ Oshkosh: Oshkosh 68, Fort Wayne 60 • Game 3: March 6, 1942 @ Oshkosh: Oshkosh 52, Fort Wayne 46 Awards and honors • NBL Most Valuable Player – Bobby McDermott • First Team All-NBL – Bobby McDermott • Second Team All-NBL – Herm Schaefer • All-Time NBL Team – Bobby McDermott ==World Professional Basketball Tournament==

For the second straight year in a row and their first ever year while being a representative of the NBL (they previously entered the 1941 event as an independent works team that had the players representing the local Zollner Piston Company establishment that was focused on machinery earning their spot in that event by beating the Fort Wayne Harvesters (the original Fort Wayne, Indiana representatives for the WPBT before the Zollner Pistons entered the picture) in a previous match in order to participate in the event, but got eliminated in the first round by the NBL champion Oshkosh All-Stars), the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons would participate in the annual World Professional Basketball Tournament in Chicago, which the 1942 event was held on March 8–12, 1942 and featured 16 teams that were mostly independently ran alongside every NBL team outside of the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots due to World War II. In the first round, the Zollner Pistons saw themselves go up against the Aberdeen Army Ordnance Training Camp team (sometimes shortened up to the Aberdeen Army Center), which was an independent team based in Aberdeen, Maryland and composed of players that were training at the Aberdeen Proving Ground during World War II, with future American Basketball League and Basketball Association of America/National Basketball Association and All-Tournament Team player Moe Becker being their leading player throughout the event. Despite the Zollner Pistons appearing to have more experience at hand due to them competing in the NBL Finals against the Oshkosh All-Stars (who would ultimately win the WPBT this year as well), they would end up being both out-poised and outplayed by the Aberdeen Army Ordnance Training Camp team, as Aberdeen ended up stunning Fort Wayne right out of the tournament with a 56–42 victory in Aberdeen's favor. The Aberdeen Army Ordnance Training Camp team would end up losing their following match to the former NBL turned independent barnstorming team known as the Detroit Eagles, who were last year's WPBT champions and reached the championship round once again despite being independent this time around, but ultimately lost to the Oshkosh All-Stars, who got their revenge for last year's defeat in the WPBT. Game Played • Lost first round (42–56) to the Aberdeen Army Ordnance Training Camp ==References==