Blue Devils guard Austin Rivers, removed from a starting lineup for one of the few times in his life, scored 20 points off the bench against Wake Forest.

When Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski informed Rivers that he would come off the bench against Wake Forest — marking the first time this season he wouldn’t be starting — the highly regarded freshman admitted he seethed.

“The past three days I haven’t slept. I’ve been thinking,” Rivers said. “I was so angry. You have no idea how angry I was. … But I realize that I need to mature.

“That’s what (Krzyzewski’s) intention was. I mean, he’s a genius. He knows what he’s doing. He’s going to make me better and this team is going to make me better.”