Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Former Cincinnati All-American Pat Cummings dies at age 55

Pat Cummings

Former Cincinnati Bearcat, All-American, and NBA forward Pat Cummings has died.

According to a report, the girlfriend of the 55-year-old Cummings found him unconscious in a friend’s apartment in New York City Tuesday and he was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Indications are that there was no criminal activity involved in his death, but an autopsy was performed Wednesday to determine the cause of his passing.

“Pat was obviously a great shooter and made a big impact as one of the best players in the history of our program,” Cincinnati head coach Mick Cronin said in a release. “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.”

Cummings played for four seasons with Cincinnati (1974-76, 1977-79), averaging 17.1 points and 8.3 rebounds per game over that span. During the 1978-79 seasons, he averaged 24.5 points and 11.3 rebounds.

He went on to play in the NBA for 12 seasons, having been drafted in the third round of the 1979 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks. In 683 career games at the professional level, he averaged 9.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.

It has been a difficult year for the community of Cincinnati Bearcat basketball alumni, as Cummings is the third former player to die in 2012. Former players Phil Wheeler and Jack Twyman died in May.

Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_