1956 NBA playoffs

Postseason tournament

1956 NBA playoffsTournament details

Dates| March 15 – April 7, 1956
Season| 1955–56
Teams| 6
Final positions
Champions| Philadelphia Warriors (2nd title)
Runners-up| Fort Wayne Pistons
Semifinalists|

* St. Louis Hawks
* Syracuse Nationals

← 1955

1957 →

The 1956 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1955–56 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia Warriors defeating the Western Conference champion Fort Wayne Pistons 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.

It was the Warriors' second NBA title; their first was in 1947 back when the NBA was known as the BAA. They would have to wait until 1975 to taste championship gold again; by that time they had moved to the Bay Area and become the Golden State Warriors. Philadelphia's later team, the Philadelphia 76ers, would win the title in 1967.

This was the Pistons' second straight trip to the NBA Finals, but they would not make another appearance until 1988 as the Detroit Pistons. No team from Indiana would return to the NBA Finals until the Indiana Pacers did so in 2000.

The play-in game between the Syracuse Nationals and the New York Knicks was the last play-in game to determine a playoff spot until 2020.[1]

## Bracket

[edit]

| | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Division Semifinals| | | Division Finals| | | NBA Finals
| |

Eastern Division

| | E1| Philadelphia*| 3
| |
| E3| Syracuse| 2| | | E3| Syracuse| 2| | |
| | | |
| E2| Boston| 1| | | | E1| Philadelphia*| 4
| | | |
| |

Western Division

| | | W1| Fort Wayne*| 1
| |
| | W1| Fort Wayne*| 3|
| |
| W3| St. Louis| 2| | | W3| St. Louis| 2| | |
| | | |
| W2| Minneapolis| 1| | | |
| |
| | | | | | |

* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals

## Division Tiebreakers

[edit]

### Eastern Division Tiebreaker

[edit]

#### New York Knicks @ Syracuse Nationals

[edit]

March 15

Boxscore

New York Knicks 77, Syracuse Nationals 82

Scoring by quarter: 19–17, 21–27, 21–20, 16–18
Pts: Harry Gallatin 19
Rebs: Ray Felix 13
Asts: Dick McGuire 9 |  | Pts: Dolph Schayes 14
Rebs: Dolph Schayes 14
Asts: Seymour, King 6 each
Syracuse finishes as the East's #3 seed, New York fails to qualify

Onondaga War Memorial, Syracuse, New York
Referees: Sid Borgia, Mendy Rudolph

### Western Division Tiebreaker

[edit]

#### Minneapolis Lakers @ St. Louis Hawks

[edit]

March 16

Boxscore

Minneapolis Lakers 103, St. Louis Hawks 97

Scoring by quarter: 27–33, 25–19, 29–17, 22–28
Pts: Slater Martin 28 |  | Pts: Bob Pettit 22
Minneapolis finishes as the West's #2 seed, St. Louis as the West's #3 seed

Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri
Referees: Mendy Rudolph, Arnie Heft

## Division Semifinals

[edit]

### Eastern Division Semifinals

[edit]

#### (2) Boston Celtics vs. (3) Syracuse Nationals

[edit]

March 17

Boxscore

Syracuse Nationals 93, Boston Celtics 110

Scoring by quarter: 22–25, 19–26, 31–29, 21–30
Pts: Ed Conlin 21
Asts: Dolph Schayes 6 |  | Pts: Bob Cousy 29
Asts: Bob Cousy 9
Boston leads series, 1–0

Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts

March 19

Boxscore

Boston Celtics 98, Syracuse Nationals 101

Scoring by quarter: 21–21, 29–32, 20–28, 28–20
Pts: Bob Cousy 28
Rebs: Arnie Risen 17
Asts: Bob Cousy 10 |  | Pts: Red Kerr 23
Rebs: Red Kerr 14
Asts: Seymour, Schayes 5 each
Series tied, 1–1

Onondaga War Memorial, Syracuse, New York

March 21

Boxscore

Syracuse Nationals 102, Boston Celtics 97

Scoring by quarter: 21–22, 36–23, 21–31, 24–21
Pts: Dolph Schayes 27
Rebs: Dolph Schayes 17
Asts: Dolph Schayes 5 |  | Pts: Bill Sharman 24
Rebs: Arnie Risen 15
Asts: Bob Cousy 7
Syracuse wins series, 2–1

Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts

This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Nationals winning three of the first four meetings.

Previous playoff series[2] Syracuse leads 3–1 in all-time playoff series

1953

Boston Celtics 2, Syracuse Nationals 0

1953 Eastern Division Semifinals

1954

Boston Celtics 0, Syracuse Nationals 2

1954 Eastern Division Round Robin Semifinals

1954

Boston Celtics 0, Syracuse Nationals 2

1954 Eastern Division Finals

1955

Boston Celtics 1, Syracuse Nationals 3

1955 Eastern Division Finals

### Western Division Semifinals

[edit]

#### (2) Minneapolis Lakers vs. (3) St. Louis Hawks

[edit]

March 17

Boxscore

Minneapolis Lakers 115, St. Louis Hawks 116

Scoring by quarter: 31–25, 29–20, 31–39, 24–32
Pts: Mikkelsen, Martin 19 each |  | Pts: Bob Pettit 25
St. Louis leads series, 1–0

Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri

March 19

Boxscore

St. Louis Hawks 75, Minneapolis Lakers 133

Scoring by quarter: 15–25, 15–36, 24–36, 21–36
Pts: Bob Pettit 14 |  | Pts: Slater Martin 19
Series tied, 1–1

Minneapolis Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota

March 21

Boxscore

St. Louis Hawks 116, Minneapolis Lakers 115

Scoring by quarter: 20–27, 32–29, 33–28, 31–31
Pts: Bob Pettit 41 |  | Pts: Clyde Lovellette 31
St. Louis wins series, 2–1

Minneapolis Auditorium, Minneapolis, Minnesota

* George Mikan’s final NBA game.

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[3]

## Division Finals

[edit]

### Eastern Division Finals

[edit]

#### (1) Philadelphia Warriors vs. (3) Syracuse Nationals

[edit]

March 23

Boxscore

Syracuse Nationals 87, Philadelphia Warriors 109

Scoring by quarter: 17–28, 27–23, 25–24, 18–34
Pts: Dolph Schayes 19
Rebs: Kerr, Schayes 14 each
Asts: George King 8 |  | Pts: Paul Arizin 29
Rebs: Neil Johnston 24
Asts: Gola, Beck 5 each
Philadelphia leads series, 1–0

Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

March 25

Boxscore

Philadelphia Warriors 118, Syracuse Nationals 122

Scoring by quarter: 38–35, 19–27, 33–36, 28–24
Pts: Neil Johnston 43
Rebs: Neil Johnston 16
Asts: Neil Johnston 7 |  | Pts: Dolph Schayes 33
Rebs: Dolph Schayes 16
Asts: George King 10
Series tied, 1–1

Onondaga War Memorial, Syracuse, New York

March 27

Boxscore

Syracuse Nationals 96, Philadelphia Warriors 119

Scoring by quarter: 23–32, 24–30, 25–25, 24–32
Pts: Ed Conlin 19
Rebs: Dolph Schayes 21
Asts: George King 6 |  | Pts: Joe Graboski 20
Rebs: Neil Johnston 18
Asts: Tom Gola 10
Philadelphia leads series, 2–1

Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

March 28

Boxscore

Philadelphia Warriors 104, Syracuse Nationals 108

Scoring by quarter: 31–26, 25–26, 18–30, 30–26
Pts: Neil Johnston 35
Rebs: Neil Johnston 12
Asts: Neil Johnston 7 |  | Pts: George King 25
Rebs: Red Kerr 9
Asts: George King 15
Series tied, 2–2

Onondaga War Memorial, Syracuse, New York

March 29

Boxscore

Syracuse Nationals 104, Philadelphia Warriors 109

Scoring by quarter: 28–32, 20–24, 25–22, 31–31
Pts: Dolph Schayes 28
Rebs: Dolph Schayes 16
Asts: George King 13 |  | Pts: Paul Arizin 35
Rebs: Neil Johnston 18
Asts: Neil Johnston 8
Philadelphia wins series, 3–2

Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the 76ers/Nationals winning the first three meetings.

Previous playoff series[4] Philadelphia 76ers/ Syracuse Nationals leads 3–0 in all-time playoff series

1950

Philadelphia Warriors 0, Syracuse Nationals 2

1950 Eastern Division Semifinals

1951

Philadelphia Warriors 0, Syracuse Nationals 2

1951 Eastern Division Semifinals

1952

Philadelphia Warriors 1, Syracuse Nationals 2

1952 Eastern Division Semifinals

### Western Division Finals

[edit]

#### (1) Fort Wayne Pistons vs. (3) St. Louis Hawks

[edit]

March 22

Boxscore

St. Louis Hawks 86, Fort Wayne Pistons 85

Scoring by quarter: 27–25, 23–20, 19–23, 17–17
Pts: Al Ferrari 17 |  | Pts: George Yardley 23
St. Louis leads series, 1–0

War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana

March 24

Boxscore

Fort Wayne Pistons 74, St. Louis Hawks 84

Scoring by quarter: 12–30, 23–17, 18–19, 21–18
Pts: Larry Foust 16 |  | Pts: Al Ferrari 21
St. Louis leads series, 2–0

Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri
Referees: Stan Stutz, Sid Borgia

March 25

Boxscore

St. Louis Hawks 84, Fort Wayne Pistons 107

Scoring by quarter: 19–29, 24–26, 16–22, 25–30
Pts: Alex Hannum 18 |  | Pts: Houbregs, Yardley 19 each
St. Louis leads series, 2–1

War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana

March 27

Boxscore

Fort Wayne Pistons 93, St. Louis Hawks 84

Scoring by quarter: 24–21, 28–27, 18–18, 23–18
Pts: George Yardley 30 |  | Pts: Jack Coleman 19
Series tied, 2–2

Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis, Missouri

March 29

Boxscore

St. Louis Hawks 97, Fort Wayne Pistons 102

Scoring by quarter: 19–24, 18–22, 31–21, 29–35
Pts: Jack Coleman 20 |  | Pts: Foust, Yardley 20 each
Fort Wayne wins series, 3–2

War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana

* Pistons become first team to come back after from a 2–0 deficit in NBA playoffs.

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[5]

## NBA Finals: (E1) Philadelphia Warriors vs. (W1) Fort Wayne Pistons

[edit]

Main article: 1956 NBA Finals

March 31

Boxscore

Fort Wayne Pistons 94, Philadelphia Warriors 98

Scoring by quarter: 25–20, 24–20, 15–33, 30–25
Pts: George Yardley 27
Rebs: George Yardley 15
Asts: Hutchins, Phillip 6 each |  | Pts: Paul Arizin 28
Rebs: Neil Johnston 14
Asts: Tom Gola 10
Philadelphia leads series, 1–0

Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 4,128

April 1

Boxscore

Philadelphia Warriors 83, Fort Wayne Pistons 84

Scoring by quarter: 20–20, 26–22, 19–23, 18–19
Pts: Paul Arizin 27
Rebs: Arizin, Johnston 9 each
Asts: Ernie Beck 6 |  | Pts: George Yardley 30
Rebs: George Yardley 19
Asts: Andy Phillip 5
Series tied, 1–1

War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana
Attendance: 6,976

April 3

Boxscore

Fort Wayne Pistons 96, Philadelphia Warriors 100

Scoring by quarter: 26–25, 25–23, 14–25, 31–27
Pts: Larry Foust 19
Rebs: Larry Foust 14
Asts: Chuck Noble 4 |  | Pts: Paul Arizin 27
Rebs: Neil Johnston 17
Asts: Tom Gola 8
Philadelphia leads series, 2–1

Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 11,698

April 5

Boxscore

Philadelphia Warriors 107, Fort Wayne Pistons 105

Scoring by quarter: 24–24, 26–32, 30–26, 27–23
Pts: Paul Arizin 30
Rebs: Tom Gola 9
Asts: Joe Graboski 7 |  | Pts: George Yardley 21
Rebs: Larry Foust 14
Asts: Andy Phillip 6
Philadelphia leads series, 3–1

War Memorial Coliseum, Fort Wayne, Indiana
Attendance: 7,852

April 7

Boxscore

Fort Wayne Pistons 88, Philadelphia Warriors 99

Scoring by quarter: 24–22, 19–22, 20–28, 25–27
Pts: George Yardley 30
Rebs: George Yardley 20
Asts: Corky Devlin 6 |  | Pts: Joe Graboski 29
Rebs: Joe Graboski 16
Asts: Jack George 10
Philadelphia wins series, 4–1

Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 11,194

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.[6]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "How the Blazers, Grizzlies, Spurs and Suns make the West play-in". ESPN.com. August 11, 2020. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
2. ^ "Team Rivalry Finder — Boston Celtics versus Philadelphia 76ers (Playoffs)". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
3. ^ "Team Rivalry Finder — Atlanta Hawks versus Los Angeles Lakers (Playoffs)". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
4. ^ "Team Rivalry Finder — Golden State Warriors versus Philadelphia 76ers (Playoffs)". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
5. ^ "Team Rivalry Finder — Atlanta Hawks versus Detroit Pistons (Playoffs)". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
6. ^ "Team Rivalry Finder — Detroit Pistons versus Golden State Warriors (Playoffs)". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved February 19, 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Basketball-Reference.com's 1956 NBA Playoffs page

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