Duke Blue Planet BLOG

Freshman Austin Rivers will enter the 2012 NBA Draft with plans to hire an agent.  Rivers, the 2012 ACC Rookie of the Year, joins Corey Maggette (1999), Luol Deng (2004) and Kyrie Irving (2011) as Blue Devils to enter the NBA Draft after just one year of college basketball.  The three previous freshmen early entrees were each selected among the first 13 players in their respective drafts, including Irving, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

“Austin had a terrific year as a freshman and has put himself in a position to pursue his dream of being a great player in the NBA,” said Coach K.  “He is an outstanding young man with an even more impressive family.  We are in total support of Austin, his family and his decision.  We look forward to watching him continue to develop and excel at the next level.”

Rivers averaged a team-high 15.5 PPG to join Johnny Dawkins (1983) and Bill Sapp (1945) as the only players to lead the Blue Devils in scoring as freshmen.  The Florida native scored in double-figures 30 times, with eight games with 20 or more points scored.  He also averaged 3.4 rebounds, while finishing second on the team in assists (71) and steals (33) and third in three-point field goals (58).

Rivers earned NABC third team All-America honors and also became just the seventh freshman in ACC history to collect first team all-conference recognition.

“I would like to thank the coaches, my teammates and the fans for helping make this past year at Duke so special,” said Rivers.  “Coach K and the rest of the staff really helped me develop and improve in all areas of the game.  It was a difficult decision to leave Duke, but I am excited about chasing my dream of playing in the NBA.”

He had his best scoring performance of the year on Feb. 8 at North Carolina.  Rivers posted a season-high 29 points and nailed a three-point field goal at the buzzer to give the Blue Devils an 85-84 win over the fifth-ranked Tar Heels.  He went 9-of-16 from the field, including 6-of-10 from three-point range, and added five rebounds in the victory. 

Rivers reached double-figures in each of the final 17 games of the season averaging a team-best 17.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in that span.

“Duke has prepared me for the challenges that are ahead both on and off the court,” added Austin.  ”I have learned so much from the coaching staff and my teammates that will help me succeed at the next level.”

Austin Rivers earned All-America honors this week, earning a spot on the NABC’s third team.  The Florida native is one of just three freshmen nationally to earn All-America honors.

Austin averaged a team-high 15.5 PPG and scored in double figures 20 times.  In the Duke freshman record book, the guard ranks third all-time in points (527).  The ACC Rookie of the Year and All-ACC First Team choice had eight 20+ point games and finished second on the team in assists (71) and steals (33).

23 different Duke players have combined for 37 All-America honors under Coach K (AP, NABC, UPI/TSN, USBWA).  The Duke Head Coach has produced 15 more All-America picks than any active coach.

The Blue Devils finished the season 27-7 after a 75-70 loss to Lehigh in Greensboro.  Mason Plumlee led Duke with 19 points and 12 rebounds and Austin Rivers scored 19 in the loss.

Thanks to all our fans who supported the team the whole way, in person, online and in front of their TV’s.  We had amazing support from Dubai to Greensboro and everywhere in between.

Duke’s performance in the NCAA Tournament under the leadership of Coach K has been second to none.  Take a look at our NCAA Tournament infographic celebrating Duke in the Big Dance.

LINK: Purchase tickets for the NCAA Tournament games in Greensboro

With a 27-6 record on the year, the Blue Devils were given the South Region’s No. 2 seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament.  The Blue Devils will meet Lehigh on Friday in Greensboro, NC and the winner of the game will advance to play the winner of Notre Dame and Xavier.

Duke enters the Big Dance having defeated an NCAA-best 10 teams in the field, including a pair of No. 1 seeds (UNC and Michigan State), a No. 2 seed (Kansas), a No. 3 seed (FSU) and a No. 4 seed (Michigan).  Other NCAA Tournament teams the Blue Devils have defeated are Davidson, Colorado State, Virginia, Belmont and NC State.  The Blue Devils were 13-6 against team’s in the top 100 of the NCAA’s RPI.

Duke’s at-large bid marks the 17th consecutive trip to the Big Dance for the Blue Devils.  Coach K has won more NCAA Tournament games than any coach in history (79-23) and Duke has the best winning percentage of any program in the history of the event (96-31, .756).  The Blue Devils have been a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in 14 of the past 16 NCAA Tournament fields.

Said Miles Plumlee, “The team that’s the hungriest is going to be the best off, so you’ve got to come in with a 0-0 mindset and want it more than the other opponent, no matter who it is.”

Quinn Cook added, “It’s going to be a doozie!”

The Blue Devils and the other 67 teams in the field will be dreaming for an outcome something like this: