1947–48 Syracuse Nationals season

1947–48 Syracuse Nationals season
Head coachBennie Borgmann (20–35[1])
Emil Barboni (interim; 1–0[1])
Danny Biasone (3–1[1])
PresidentDanny Biasone
General managerGeorge Mingin
OwnersDanny Biasone (majority)
George Mingin (minority)
ArenaWest Jefferson Street Armory
Results
Record24–36 (.400)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Eastern)
Playoff finishLost NBL Eastern Division opening round to the Anderson Duffey Packers, 0–3
Stats at Basketball Reference

The 1947–48 Syracuse Nationals season was the second season of the franchise in the National Basketball League. This season saw Bennie Borgmann return to the reigns of the head coach role for Syracuse after previously being let go from the head coach role near the end of the season and being replaced by both minority owner/general manager George Mingin on an interim basis and Jerry Rizzo as a player-coach for the rest of the season. Borgmann would once again continue to be the head coach for Syracuse for most of the season before randomly being let go of near the end of the season once again, with his replacements near the end of the season being leading team scout Emil Barboni under an interim basis for one game and majority team owner Danny Biasone for the rest of the season afterward.[1] During this entire season, the Nationals would see themselves fight against the Toledo Jeeps for the final spot of the NBL Playoffs within the Eastern Division after the top three teams of the division that year in the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons, Anderson Duffey Packers, and Rochester Royals all separated themselves from the rest of the pack early on in the season. While the Nationals ended up finishing the season with a losing record, they would end up taking the final Eastern Division playoff spot ahead of Toledo (who would later fold operations entirely following this season's end after both the Jeeps and the Oshkosh All-Stars failed to join the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons, the Indianapolis Kautskys, the Minneapolis Lakers, and the Rochester Royals from the NBL to the newer rivaling BAA) that season, where they ended up going up against the #2 seeded Anderson Duffey Packers before ultimately getting swept by them 3–0 in the opening round of the NBL Playoffs.

Roster

1947-48 Syracuse Nationals roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
F/C Jim Homer 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1921-12-05 Alabama
F/C Mike Novak 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 219 lb (99 kg) 1915-04-23 Loyola Chicago
G Jerry Rizzo 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 150 lb (68 kg) 1918-03-12 Fordham
F/C John Chaney 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1920-02-29 LSU
G/F Steve Sharkey 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1918-12-30 Nott Terrace (NY)
G/F Robert Kitterman 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1923-04-02 Southeastern CC (IA)
G/F Paul Seymour 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1928-01-30 Toledo
G George Nelmark 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1917-05-09 Truman State
F John Abramovic 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1919-02-09 Salem
G/F Edwin Oram 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1914-10-05 USC
G Bob O'Shaughnessy 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1917-01-09 Nevada
F/C Virgil Vaughn 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1918-05-15 Western Kentucky
G/F Chick Meehan 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1917-01-09 Christian Brothers Academy (NY)
G William DeVenzio 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1924-08-02 Eastern Kentucky
G Garland O'Shields 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1921-05-23 Tennessee
G/F Roy Hurley 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1922-08-12 Arsenal Tech HS (IN)
F/C Bob Fitzgerald 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1923-03-14 Seton Hall
G Johnny Sebastian 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1921-11-20 Southern Illinois
G Ken Walters 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1922-04-29 Ohio University
Head coach

Bennie Borgmann
Emil Barboni
Danny Biasone

Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster

Season standings

NBL Schedule

Not to be confused with exhibition or other non-NBL scheduled games that did not count towards Syracuse's official NBL record for this season. An official database created by John Grasso detailing every NBL match possible (outside of two matches that the Kankakee Gallagher Trojans won over the Dayton Metropolitans in 1938) would be released in 2026 showcasing every team's official schedules throughout their time spent in the NBL. As such, these are the official results recorded for the Syracuse Nationals during their second season in the NBL.

# Date Opponent Score Record
1 November 8 Fort Wayne 51–52 0–1
2 November 13 Oshkosh 65–59 1–1
3 November 14 Oshkosh 46–56 1–2
4 November 15 N Tri-Cities 73–72 2–2
5 November 16 @ Tri-Cities 56–69 2–3
6 November 18 Flint 66–51 3–3
7 November 21 Rochester 72–75 3–4
8 November 22 @ Rochester 60–64 3–5
9 November 27 Minneapolis 72–66 4–5
10 November 29 Toledo 59–48 5–5
11 December 4 Anderson 64–65 5–6
12 December 6 Sheboygan 63–47 6–6
13 December 11 Sheboygan 53–58 6–7
14 December 13 @ Flint (Midland) 64–55 7–7
15 December 14 N Fort Wayne 47–58 7–8
16 December 15 @ Anderson 53–72 7–9
17 December 16 @ Indianapolis 72–80 7–10
18 December 17 @ Toledo 54–72 7–11
19 December 19 Indianapolis 47–37 8–11
20 December 25 Rochester 60–61 8–12
21 December 27 N Indianapolis 64–53 9–12
22 December 28 @ Tri-Cities 43–53 9–13
23 December 30 @ Tri-Cities 57–65 9–14
24 January 1 Tri-Cities 45–50 9–15
25 January 3 Sheboygan 57–45 10–15
26 January 8 Minneapolis 59–68 10–16
27 January 15 Indianapolis 53–51 11–16
28 January 17 Minneapolis 71–65 (OT) 12–16
29 January 22 Anderson 52–59 12–17
30 January 29 Fort Wayne 55–69 12–18
31 January 31 @ Toledo 48–58 12–19
32 February 2 @ Flint 67–65 (OT) 13–19
33 February 4 @ Minneapolis 55–70 13–20
34 February 5 @ Minneapolis 55–69 13–21
35 February 8 N Fort Wayne 52–62 13–22
36 February 9 @ Anderson 47–53 13–23
37 February 11 N Indianapolis 53–57 13–24
38 February 12 @ Tri-Cities 69–60 14–24
39 February 13 Fort Wayne 49–64 14–25
40 February 15 N Oshkosh 75–62 15–25
41 February 16 N Sheboygan 58–78 15–26
42 February 18 @ Oshkosh 65–77 15–27
43 February 19 @ Sheboygan 56–74 15–28
44 February 20 N Oshkosh 87–80 16–28
45 February 21 @ Oshkosh 58–62 16–29
46 February 22 @ Sheboygan 75–69 17–29
47 February 24 @ Rochester 54–78 17–30
48 February 26 Indianapolis 83–60 18–30
49 February 28 @ Rochester 52–64 18–31
50 February 29 N Minneapolis 56–66 32–18
51 March 1 @ Toledo 59–55 19–32
52 March 4 Toledo 45–49 19–33
53 March 7 @ Fort Wayne 48–70 19–34
54 March 8 @ Anderson 62–99 19–35
55 March 10 @ Flint 71–59 20–35
56 March 11 @ Toledo 48–45 21–35
57 March 13 Flint/Midland 90–71 22–35
58 March 16 Anderson 54–45 23–35
59 March 18 Rochester 48–76 23–36
60 March 20 Flint/Midland 66–60 24–36

Eastern Division standings

Pos. Eastern Division Wins Losses Win %
1 Rochester Royals 44 16 .733
2 Anderson Duffey Packers 42 18 .700
3 Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons 40 20 .667
4 Syracuse Nationals 24 36 .400
5 Toledo Jeeps 22 37 .373
6 Flint/Midland Dow A.C.'s‡ 8 52 .133
‡ Flint relocated to Midland during the season and assumed Flint's record in the standings.
It's unknown what the records for Flint's tenure and Midland's tenure were.

[2]

Playoffs

Eastern Division Opening Round

(4E) Syracuse Nationals vs. (2E) Anderson Duffey Packers: Anderson wins series 3–0

  • Game 1: March 23, 1948 @ Anderson: Anderson 73, Syracuse 56[3]
  • Game 2: March 24, 1948 @ Anderson: Anderson 72, Syracuse 54
  • Game 3: March 27, 1948 @ Syracuse: Rochester 79, Syracuse 68

References

  1. ^ a b c d "SYRACUSE NATS: 1947–1948". probasketballencyclopedia.com. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  2. ^ 1947–48 NBL season summary
  3. ^ Bradley, Robert; Grasso, John (2003). Total Basketball: The Ultimate Basketball Encyclopedia. SPORT Media Publishing, Inc. ISBN 1-894963-01-6., p. 423
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