Moncrief one of the original Triplets
One of the famed “Triplets,” along with Ron Brewer and Marvin Delph, Sidney Moncrief helped make Arkansas basketball a nationally known program.
A two-time All-American, the Little Rock native guided the Hogs to the Final Four in 1978 and within a victory of another Final Four in 1979.
Playing for head coach Eddie Sutton, he helped Arkansas finish 19-9 in 1976, 26-2 with Southwest Conference regular season and tournament titles and an NCAA Tournament appearance in ’77; 32-4 with another SWC title, a No. 5 final national ranking and the Final Four in ’78; and 25-5 with SWC regular season and tournament championships, a No. 5 final ranking and an NCAA Tournament Elite Eight appearance in ’79.
The NCAA Tournament bid in 1977 was the first for Arkansas in 19 years and the 1978 Final Four the first since 1945.
Moncrief was an All-American in 1978 and ’79, and a first-team All-SWC pick in 1977, ’78 and ’79.
Moncrief, who earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education in 1979, is second on Arkansas’ career scoring chart with 2,066 points, third with 739 field goals made, second with a .606 field goal percentage, first with 588 made free throws, first with 752 free throws attempted and first with 1,015 rebounds.
He averaged 13.3 points and 4.0 rebounds as a freshman, 19.5 points and 5.4 rebounds as a sophomore, 20.7 points and 5.3 rebounds as a junior, and 22.7 points and 7.0 rebounds as a senior.
He led the team in scoring in 1979, in field goal percentage in 1976 (.665), ’77 (.649) and ’78 (.590), in free-throw percentage in ’79 (.855), in rebounding in ’76 (7.6), ’77 (8.4), ’78 (7.7) and ’79 (9.6), and in steals in ’79 (1.47).
The fifth pick by Milwaukee in the first round of the 1979 NBA Draft, he played 11 years in the NBA from 1980-91. He played the first 10 years with the Bucks and closed his career with Atlanta.
In 767 career games, he averaged 15.6 points while shooting 50.2 percent from the field and 83.1 percent at the line, but defense set him apart. He was the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year the first two years the award existed – 1983 and ’84.
His statistics from 1983 included 22.5 points per game, 5.8 rebounds, 3.9 assists and a .524 field goal percentage. He made the All-NBA first team along with Larry Bird, Julius Erving, Moses Malone and Magic Johnson.
From 1982-86, he averaged more than 19 points per game, earned All-NBA honors all five years and played for the Eastern Conference in the NBA All-Star Game every year.
The 6-4, 190-pound guard helped the Bucks earn seven straight Midwest Division titles and 10 consecutive playoff appearances. Moncrief helped Milwaukee advance to the Eastern Conference finals in 1983 and 1984.
He left Milwaukee in 1989 as the Bucks’ second-highest scoring player behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He was also second in assists and games played, fourth in rebounding, and first in free throws made and attempted.
On Jan. 6, 1990, his No. 4 jersey was retired by Milwaukee. He signed with Atlanta as a free agent on Oct. 9, 1990, and played in 72 games for the Hawks.
He ended his playing career with 11,931 points (15.6 ppg), 3,575 rebounds (4.7) and 2,793 assists (3.6). In 93 playoff games, he averaged 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists.
As a prep senior at Hall High School, he averaged 19.2 points per game.
Following his NBA career, he has spent time in private business, as a coach at Arkansas-Little Rock, on the staff of the Dallas Mavericks, as the head coach of the NBA Development League’s Fort Worth Flyers and as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors.
The University of Arkansas’ Athletic Department recognizes its heritage and the countless contributions made by African-American student-athletes in all 19 of its varsity sports. The Razorbacks are proud to celebrate this great tradition and recognize some of the inspiring pioneers, great student-athletes and outstanding role models that have worn a Razorback uniform as a part of Black History Month.
