At times it's hard to forget that Austin Hamilton is a freshman.

But not because he looks out of place on offense or struggles defending his position.

Exactly the opposite. Hamilton appears so in control on both ends of the court that it makes you wonder who that kid is that looks like he's been running the show for four years. Then it hits you—he's only a freshman.

It didn't take long for the Elon University men's basketball coaching staff to take notice. The 5-foot-10-inch point guard played his way into the starting lineup by the team's second game of the season, making his first collegiate start in a win against the University of South Carolina Nov. 15 in Alumni Gym.

After sophomore starting guard Jack Isenbarger was sidelined with a shoulder injury suffered in the team's first game, the coaching staff inserted Hamilton into the starting lineup.

"They called on me to step into his spot and try to control the offense," Hamilton said. "I'm doing that as best as I can, and to get used to things and help my team win."

Hamilton played 32 minutes and scored 12 points to help Elon upset South Carolina. He's averaging 30.6 minutes a game this season, which ranks second on the team behind sophomore guard Sebastian Koch. Hamilton's also averaging 9.6 points a game and leads the team in both assists (2.6) and steals (1.2) through five games.

"He's got a great feel for the game," head coach Matt Matheny said. "He's learning our system pretty well but in the process he's making a lot of plays on feel, on things that he does naturally. And as a result he's been able to play through difficult environments and he's played pretty well."

Even as Hamilton adjusts to the Phoenix's system, Matheny said he has looked "smooth on the court" and he "has a sense about him that he has got things under control whether he does or not."

Senior guard Drew Spradlin said it is uncommon for a freshman to see so many minutes this quickly, but Hamilton's ability to talk on the floor and his understanding of the game have led to his smooth transition.

"A lot of times freshmen come in and they're talented enough to play, but it's not easy to play with them because they don't open their mouths," Spradlin said. "He communicates well and he understands the game, so we don't have to be directing him where to go all the time because he knows what he's doing. He's definitely a step ahead there and he's easy to play with." Hamilton's ability to find openings in the defense and distribute the ball is a positive for the Phoenix offense, Matheny said.

"He's very smart about his use of the dribble," he said. "He picks the right spots to dribble into the cracks and to create not only for himself but he helps get other people shots. That's probably the best thing he's bringing to our team right now is picking the right spots to penetrate."

It's that ability to create shots for himself and others that initially drew Matheny's interest back during Hamilton's junior year of high school in Herndon, Va. Matheny watched Hamilton play in an open gym and was also struck by how much he enjoyed playing and how his teammates responded to him.

"Once you see a kid in his high school environment and you see how much his teammates like him, then you see him making deep threes but also using the dribble," Matheny said. "It wasn't like in the open gym he had to shoot the ball every time. He helped get his teammates shots. I was just really impressed from his overall demeanor and character."

Elon was the first school that recruited him on of a list that included George Washington University, St. Francis University, Towson University and Northeastern University, Hamilton said. He committed to play for the Phoenix on his campus visit in April, about a week before signing day.

"(The team) had that family oriented environment," Hamilton said. "I thought that was special. I just had that gut feeling that this was the right place for me."

And now he's glad to be here.

"It's been amazing," he said. "I'm having a lot of fun being a student here first and playing basketball. It's a dream come true."

Lucky for him he won't have to wake up for another three and a half years.