UK notes: Vargas asserts himself

In the fading minutes of Kentucky's 89-52 victory over Winthrop Wednesday, backup center Eloy Vargas rebounded a missed shot. He bulled (sort of) his way to a put-back basket while contact contorted his body.

The Rupp Arena crowd roared as the willowy big man continued to flex a bit of muscle. A big grin spread across UK Coach John Calipari's face.

"Maybe he sees some light now (about) how he's got to play," Calipari said. "He finally performed.

"And, believe me, confidence is demonstrated performance. It's not what I say (or) what I want him to do. It's you've got to demonstrate it to yourself and your teammates on the court. And he did it today."

After UK's last game, Calipari said Vargas grabbed rebounds in traffic for the first time. Against Winthrop, he scored a season-high eight points, grabbed three rebounds and blocked a season-high three shots.

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