Duke Basketball: How Will Austin Rivers Compare to 5 Former Stars vs. UNC?

Austin Rivers is getting ready to face off for the first time against Duke's biggest rival: North Carolina.

Right or wrong, part of his collegiate legacy will be determined by how he plays against the Tar Heels.

Rivers comes into his initial experience against UNC averaging 15.8 ppg (on 46 percent shooting from the field; 58 percent from the line; and 33 percent from beyond the arc) over the Blue Devils' last five games.

If Rivers has a fantastic first game, it could launch him forward through the rest of his freshman season. If he flops, he could be the target of a ton of criticism and attacks.

Let's take a quick look at the first UNC game performance of five former Blue Devils' stars.

Bobby Hurley

One of Bobby Hurley's worst games as a Blue Devil came in his first foray against the Tar Heels.

Hurley scored six points (on 2-of-9 shooting), handed out one assist and committed 10 (yes, I said 10) turnovers. Ouch!

North Carolina was up 45-21 at the half, and ended up winning this game at home 79-60.

J.J. Redick

J.J's first game against Carolina was a good one.

He scored 17 points on 4-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc.

He grabbed three offensive rebounds and snatched two steals.

The Blue Devils won the home game, 83-74, on their way to beating UNC both times in the 2002-03 season.

Shane Battier

Shane Battier played a secondary role in his first Duke vs North Carolina game.

He played 22 minutes, scored two points (0-for-4 from the field), grabbed four rebounds, and committed two turnovers as the Tar Heels whipped the Blue Devils 97-73.

Even though Battier's freshmen numbers weren't amazing (7.6 ppg and 6.4 rpg), this was a below average game for the Birmingham, MI native.

Jay Williams

Jay Williams first game against UNC was a mixture of good and not-so-good.

Williams scored 12 points (good) on 1-for-8 shooting from beyond the arc (not-so-good)

The PG from Plainfield, NJ dished out six assists (good) but committed five turnovers (not-so-good).

He had three steals (good), but shot 1-for-6 from the free throw line (not-so-good).

Duke went to overtime to beat North Carolina (90-86) at the Smith Center.

Jon Scheyer

Jon Scheyer had an outstanding first-game performance against the Tar Heels.

He pumped in 24 points (on 5-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc), grabbed five rebounds and handed out 4 assists.

Duke blew open a close game in the second half to beat Carolina 64-54.