Davidson (6-1) at Arizona (5-1)

TUCSON, ARIZONA (TICKER) —Fourth-ranked Arizona looks to bounce back from its first loss of the season when it hosts a tough opponent in Davidson on Saturday at the Fiesta Bowl Classic.

Arizona (5-1) played just its second road game of the season last Saturday and suffered a 66-65 loss at Louisiana State. The Wildcats nearly erased a 15-point deficit in the second half before falling short as Jason Gardner’s alley-oop attempt was batted away as time expired.

Gardner led Arizona with 16 points but made just 5-of-14 shots. Rick Anderson and freshman Hassan Adams each chipped in 11 points for the Wildcats, who shot just under 33 percent (23-of-70).

The Wildcats played for the second straight game without injured forward Luke Walton, who is recovering from an ankle injury. Walton is listed as day-to-day.

Arizona’s impressive freshmen have endured their share of ups and downs. Adams is averaging 13.3 points off the bench while Andre Iguodala is shooting just under 32 percent (13-of-41) in his last four games.

Davidson (6-1) enters with a six-game winning streak after a season-opening loss at Duke on November 25. Davidson, also named the Wildcats, was competitive throughout and allowed the Blue Devils to score the game’s final eight points to make the final score a bit deceiving.

Freshman Ian Johnson scored 21 points as Davidson cruised to a 125-44 rout of Washington & Jefferson last Saturday. It was Davidson’s third game against teams with schools that have Washington in its name, including triumphs over Washington College and Washington & Lee.

Wayne Bernard leads Davidson in scoring at 15.3 points per game and fellow senior Peter Anderer chips in 14.9. Anderer was the MVP of the Big South tournament a year ago in Davidson’s run to the title.

This is the first meeting between the teams. The winner will face Florida State or Boston University in Monday’s championship.