Basketball (M)
Walt Beazley

Moncrief Named Finalist For Naismith Hall Of Fame

February 19, 2017

NEW ORLEANS – As one of the greatest players to ever wear a Razorback jersey, Arkansas legend Sidney Moncrief has been named one of 14 finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2017.

The Class of 2017 will be announced on Monday, April 3 at a press conference in Phoenix prior to the NCAA Men’s Championship game. A finalist needs 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The Class of 2017 will be enshrined during festivities in Springfield, Massachusetts, the birthplace of basketball, September 7-9, 2017.


Moncrief signed with the Razorbacks out of Little Rock Hall High School to play for Coach Eddie Sutton. Moncrief, along with fellow Razorback legends Ron Brewer and Marvin Delph would become known nationally as “The Triplets,” helping put the University of Arkansas on the college basketball map.

Already a member of the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor, the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame, Moncrief had his No. 32 unveiled in the rafters of Bud Walton Arena during the 2014-15 season.

As a guard for the Razorbacks from 1975-79, he earned All-America honors in 1977, 1978 and 1979 and was named the Southwest Conference Most Valuable Player in 1979. in 1978, the Razorbacks advanced to the Final Four before falling in the national semifinal to No. 1 Kentucky. Arkansas went on to defeat Notre Dame in the third-place game. In his senior season, Moncrief help lead the Razorbacks to an NCAA Regional Final, before the Razorbacks fell to Indiana State, and future NBA Hall of Famer Larry Bird, on a buzzer beating shot.

Moncrief finished his Razorback career as Arkansas’ all-time leading scorer with 2,066 points. He held that record for 13 years and still ranks second only to Todd Day (2,395) in the Razorback history books. A prolific scorer, Moncrief averaged 12.6, 15.4, 17.3 and 22.0 points per game in his freshman, sophomore, junior and senior seasons, respectively. He still holds school career records with 588 free throws and 1,015 rebounds. He ranks second in career field goal percentage (.606) and third in field goals made (739).

After college, Moncrief was a first-round pick in the NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, where he went on to be a five-time NBA All-Star and was named to the All-NBA first team. He also earned two NBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards for the Bucks. Moncrief played 10 seasons for Milwaukee before returning to the NBA for one season with the Atlanta Hawks. He retired from the NBA in 1991. During his 11-year NBA career, Moncrief averaged 15.6 points per game.

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