The 1942 World Professional Basketball Tournament was the fourth edition of the World Professional Basketball Tournament. It was held in Chicago, Illinois, during the days of 8–12 March 1942 and featured 16 teams, with the teams mostly being independently run teams that also competed alongside six teams that were around in the National Basketball League at the time because of World War II. The NBL's champions that year, the Oshkosh All-Stars, had their route to the championship occur by beating independently ran teams like the Davenport Central Turner Rockets, the New York Renaissance, and the Harlem Globetrotters. However, the other half of the tournament had the most impressive team involve the Long Island Grumman Flyers (which was composed of star players from the American Basketball League and New York Rens working at the Grumman Aircraft Company in Long Island) reaching the semifinal round before losing 44–43 in overtime to the defending WPBT champion Detroit Eagles (which had since demoted itself into a barnstorming team after winning last year's WPBT championship). The WPBT championship this year was won by the NBL champion Oshkosh All-Stars (being the first professional champion team to win multiple championships in the same season), who got their revenge for last year and defeated the NBL turned barnstorming Detroit Eagles 43–41 in the championship game because hobbled veteran Leroy Edwards scored five quick points off the bench late in the game for Oshkosh.[1][2] The Long Island Grumman Flyers came in third after beating the Harlem Globetrotters 43–41 in the third-place game.[1]Ed Riska of the Oshkosh All-Stars was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Gene Englund led all scorers with 54 points, while Riska came second with 50.[3]
