OXFORD — A tweak in Chris Beard's starting lineup helped showcase a new side to Ole Miss basketball transfer Ilias Kamardine.

It was effective.

The Rebels (3-0) beat Memphis 83-77 on Nov. 11 at the Sandy and John Black Pavilion.

For the first time this season, Beard inserted point guard Kezza Giffa into the Ole Miss starting lineup. The 6-foot-5 Kamardine, who did a lot of ball-handling in the first two games, played as a shooting guard against the Tigers (1-1).

"We really don't have a starting lineup at this point," Beard said. "A lot of that is based off games. I thought we needed another ball handler out there tonight."

Kamardine scored 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting. He added four rebounds and four assists, which was one behind Giffa for the team lead.

Kamardine, who is classified as a senior, has had a unique path to college basketball. He is from Marseille, France, and played professionally for JDA Dijon in his home country. Paperwork hangups delayed his offseason transfer. He was fully cleared to move to the United States in August, which forced him to miss summer workouts in Oxford.

Memphis coach Penny Hardaway, a former NBA All-Star, said Kamardine's overseas experience showed. Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić came to his mind.

"(Kamardine is) seasoned," Hardaway said. "Very skilled and he's seasoned. Can't be rushed. I remember Luka Dončić talking about the transition from overseas to here. He said the NBA was way easier than overseas. (Kamardine) is making it look like college is way easier than overseas."

His connection with Giffa, a senior transfer from High Point, is natural. Giffa is from Paris, France.

"Ilias is my guy," Giffa said. "I grew up playing against Ilias as well. And he speaks French, so it's fun to have someone I can speak French to at the end of the day. He's a great guy to be around."

After scoring 13 in the season opener and 15 against ULM on Nov. 7, Kamardine leads the Rebels in scoring at 18 points per game.

Against the Tigers he was 11-for-14 shooting with three 3-pointers.

"(Kamardine) is a great leader," Giffa said. "An unbelievable IQ. He played pro basketball for several years. He's just a pro, you know. He played on the French national team. In that type of environment you don't have a lot of time to build chemistry. He came in and fit right in."

Sam Hutchens covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at [email protected] or reach him on X at @Sam_Hutchens_

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: How Ole Miss basketball's Ilias Kamardine impressed Penny Hardaway