Miami-Dade Junior College forward Eloy Vargas will take his visit to Arizona next weekend instead of this weekend (Vargas photo)

The official visit of Miami-Dade Junior College forward Eloy Vargas has been rescheduled to May 14-15, according to his AAU coach Kenny Gillion.

Vargas, a 6-11 player who played his freshman season at Florida, was originally scheduled to visit this weekend, followed by a visit to Seattle afterward. Vargas instead will visit Seattle on May 10-11, followed by his trip to Tucson on May 14-15.

Gillion told Josh Gershon of GOAZCATS.com that the change was made to accomodate the Arizona coaching staff, which wanted to host Vargas last in attempt to have a lasting impression before he made his decision.

The visit comes at an opportune time as well for Arizona. The spring signing period ends May 19, only four days after Vargas departs Tucson. Vargas has no other known visits scheduled.

He indicated to me when I first contacted him that he is not fond of the recruiting process and talking about his status, etc. That’s why he diverted me to Gillion for any questions regarding his recruitment last month. Hence, it is highly likely Vargas will make a decision after his visit to the Arizona campus.

This entry is part of the weekly “Nothing but the Notes” blog that is featured at our partner site WILDABOUTAZCATS.com

Miami-Dade Junior College forward Eloy Vargas could help fill the void of interior defense and rebounding that Arizona had this season

How valuable will Miami-Dade Junior College forward Eloy Vargas be to Sean Miller’s program next season if he signs with Arizona?

The Wildcats tallied 78 blocked shots as a team last year. Three ex-Wildcats — Loren Woods, Channing Frye and Anthony Cook — recorded more than 78 blocked shots individually in four different seasons.

Woods had a school-record 102 in 1999-2000 and 84 in 2000-01. Frye had 85 in 2004-05 and Cook 84 in 1988-89. It’s not a coincidence that in these seasons the UA advanced to the Final Four (2000-01), Elite Eight (2004-05) and the Sweet 16 (1988-89). Having a dominating defensive presence inside makes perimeter defenders better because they have more of a chance to stay between the ball-handler and the basket.

UA coach Sean Miller often said his team was undersized at all positions and that affected the Wildcats’ defense.

“The bottom line is we are a bad team defensively,” he said after the UA lost to Washington State at McKale Center in January. “It’s like we have a slow cornerback defending a receiver who just runs right by him every time. We could not guard them. Some of the rebounds they got were just because we couldn’t grab them.”

Vargas, a 6-11 player with athleticism and a long reach, averaged 14.1 rebounds and posted 86 blocked shots this season for Miami-Dade in 25 games, an average of 3.4 a game. Vargas’ quick hands are also a reason why he had a team-high 51 steals despite being a post player.

The Wildcats were led by Jamelle Horne‘s 30 blocked shots, only one per game. Pac-10 opponents recorded 63 blocked shots vs. Arizona’s 39.

In Arizona’s eight defeats in Pac-10 play, the UA blocked only 16 shots. Oregon State post player Roeland Schaftenaar and Washington State’s DeAngelo Casto had some of their best games of the season against impromptu post player Derrick Williams, mostly because Williams had little or no help-side defense to alter shots and grab potential defensive rebounds. The UA ranked No. 9 in the Pac-10 in defensive rebounds.

In the four matchups this season, Schaftenaar and Casto combined to shoot 27 of 49 from the field (55.1 percent) with 28 rebounds (seven a game) and 71 points (17.8). Arizona lost its four games against Oregon State and Washington State, which was the difference in the UA failing to make the NCAA tournament for the first time in 26 years.

If the UA took care of business against these teams, especially last-place Washington State, it would have been 20-10 to end the regular season with a 14-4 Pac-10 record, good enough to win the regular-season title. As it turned out, the UA was swept by a last-place team in the Pac-10 for the first time in the program’s history. Interior defense and lack of size played the biggest part in that happening.

Vargas would go a long way in remedying that situation. He takes an official visit to Arizona next Friday and Saturday.

UPDATE: Kadeem Jack and his mother are visiting South Kent (Conn.) Prep this week, according to Adam Zagoria

Damian Leslie, Kadeem Jack‘s mentor, has finally surfaced in a media report indicating that Jack will attend a prep school next year.

“He’s not committing to a college,” Leslie told DNAinfo. “I don’t think it’s what anyone expects.”

Leslie has not returned phone calls and text messages sent from TucsonCitizen.com.

Jack, a 6-9 forward from Manhattan (N.Y.) Rice High School, was to announce his college choice Wednesday, but opted to delay that announcement. Those recruiting him the most included Arizona, Miami, Arkansas and UConn.

With Jack apparently out of the picture, the UA is likely focusing its attention on Miami-Dade Junior College forward Eloy Vargas, who played his freshman season at Florida. Vargas will visit the UA campus on May 7-8 and follow that up with a visit to Seattle University.

Arizona has one scholarship to fill for the Class of 2010-11.