Ole Miss, Chris Beard stay hot in the portal as the Rebels add Memphis native Davon Barnes

OXFORD, Miss. –  Head coach Chris Beard and the Ole Miss men’s basketball team have received their fourth transfer portal commitment, this one coming from Davon Barnes who will transfer from Sam Houston University with one year of eligibility to play.

(Click here for our 2024 Men’s Basketball Portal Tracker.)

Barnes joins joins transfers Malik Dia (Belmont), Mikeal Brown-Jones (UNC-Greensboro), and Dre Davis (Seton Hall) in this portal class for the Rebels thus far.

This past season with the Bearkats, Barnes led the team in games played (33) and averaged 13.5 points per game, the second most on the team while shooting 39.1 percent from three-point range.

The 6-foot-5, 215-pound guard also collected 3.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Sam Houston finished the regular season first in the Conference USA standings, thanks to the help provided by Barnes in his first and only year there.

Davon Barnes out of Texas Southern is a strong bodied guard with great size for a wing. A solid shot-maker with a good mid-range jumper and an improved three-point jumper from a year ago. He’s also a solid finisher around the rim with a good floater in the lane. pic.twitter.com/yxbQemwGr8

— Global Scouting (@GlobalScouting_) March 12, 2023

Before Sam Houston, Davon played at Texas Southern University for two years, where he took a major step forward in his gameplay. During his freshman year, Barnes played under 10 minutes per game, but as a sophomore, he averaged over 30 minutes of playing time.

After showing improvement in his shooting, rebounding, and defensive skills, he made the jump from Texas Southern to Sam Houston for his junior year. Ironically enough, one of his first games with the Bearkats took place in the SJB Pavilion.

Back in November of the 2023-2024 season, Sam Houston lost to Ole Miss in Oxford with a 70-67 final score. Regardless of the outcome, Barnes scored 22 points, shot 100 percent from the free-throw line, and notched a steal.

Though his commitment may have come as a surprise, Barnes is another elite addition to this transfer portal class. You can expect an abundance of defensive energy along with incredible length, size, speed, and a knockdown jump shot.

For all of your transfer portal updates and more, be sure to stay tuned with The Rebel Walk!