William John "Wild Bill" Hapac (January 26, 1918 – March 9, 1967) was the first consensus All-American to play for the University of Illinois men's basketball team when he garnered the recognition during his senior season of 1939–40. A native of Chicago, Illinois, Hapac was an all-state player for J. Sterling Morton High School East in 1935.

Bill Hapac
Bill Hapac c. 1939
Personal information
Born(1918-01-26)January 26, 1918
Chicago, Illinois, US
DiedMarch 9, 1967(1967-03-09) (aged 49)
Chicago, Illinois, US
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High schoolJ. Sterling Morton (Chicago, Illinois)
CollegeIllinois (1937–1940)
Playing career1940–1948
PositionGuard / forward
Number19
Career history
1940–1941Chicago Bruins
1945–1946Chicago American Gears
1946–1947Anderson Packers
1947–1948Oshkosh All-Stars
Career highlights and awards

Hapac would star for the Fighting Illini before playing in the National Basketball League from 1940 to 1948. He set a then-unheard of Big Ten Conference single game scoring record of 34 points against Minnesota on February 10, 1940. His senior year, he was honored as a Consensus NCAA First Team All-American and was the first ever recipient of the University of Illinois' Athlete of the Year award. In addition to basketball, Hapac also lettered for three years while playing for the school's baseball team.

Hapac played professionally for the Chicago Bruins for the 1940–41 season, followed by four years of military service. He returned to the NBL in 1945, playing for the Chicago American Gears for the 1945–46 season, the Anderson Packers for the 1946–47 season and the Oshkosh All-Stars for the 1947–48 season. Hapac finished his professional career by playing for an independent league team, the Chicago Ingots, for the 1947–48 season.[1]

Military and beyond

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Hapac was pursued by the Detroit Tigers, but while waiting for spring training to begin, he was inducted into the US Army, eventually earning him the rank of captain. Hapac coached basketball with fellow Illini player, Jim Vopicka, at Morton East from 1952 until his death in 1967 at 49 years of age of an undisclosed rare disease. Shortly after his death, the newly constructed gymnasium at Morton East was dedicated to his memory.[2][3]

Honors

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Statistics

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College

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Season Games Points PPG Big Ten
Record
Overall
Record
Postseason
1937–38 18 110 6.1 4–8 9–9
1938–39 22 101 4.6 9–3 13–3 Big Ten All-Conference 2nd team
1939–40 18 244 13.6 7–5 14–6 Consensus All-American
Totals 58 455 7.8 20–16 36–18
Legend
  GP Games played  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game
 PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

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Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1940–41 Chicago 24 .626 9.5
1945–46 Chicago 19 .573 5.5
1946–47 Anderson 41 .678 6.8
1947–48 Oshkosh 47 .621 6.8
Career 131 .634 6.4

Playoffs

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Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1940–41 Chicago 1 .333 5.0
1945–46 Chicago 4 .333 1.5
1946–47 Anderson 2 .615 6.0
1947–48 Oshkosh 4 .688 5.8
Career 11 .579 4.2

[6]

References

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  1. "Woods, Carney and Hapac Join List of Honored Jerseys". University of Illinois. August 14, 2008. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
  2. "Phillip, Kerr and Fletcher Next on List of Honored Jerseys". University of Illinois. September 9, 2008. Archived from the original on June 9, 2011. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
  3. "IHSA Boys All-State Players". Illinois High School Association. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
  4. "Basketball Heroes". basketballhistorian.com. Archived from the original on May 25, 2010. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
  5. "Known Deceased Basketball Individuals". apbr.org. The Association for Professional Basketball Research. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
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