SMU entered Tuesday statistically as the American Athletic Conference's most prolific offense. It ranked No. 1 in a variety of categories.

That copious offensive attack was a no-show in the first half against Cincinnati. And it was only slightly better in the second half.

A bad offensive night for the Mustangs resulted in a 65-43 loss to Cincinnati at Fifth Third Arena. The setback halted a three-game win streak for SMU (15-5, 5-3), while Cincinnati improved to 6-2 in AAC play and 13-7 overall.

Cincinnati played solid defense, but it didn't do anything overly dominant or even daedal Tuesday night. SMU simply couldn't make shots at Fifth Third Arena. The Mustangs connected on only 6 of 25 shots (24%) in the first half -- which included an 0-for-5 start, a 1-for-12 effort and a 2-for-15 performance throughout the first 20 minutes -- and 14 of 54 shots (26%) for the game.

Part of that can be credited by Cincinnati's athletic lineup, which held three starters scoreless -- including high-scoring point guard Kendric Davis. Cincinnati held Davis to no points and one assist; he entered Tuesday as the AAC's second-leading scorer and a national top-10 assists player.

To summarize SMU's offensive inconsistency, 30 minutes into the 40-minute battle, the Mustangs only had nine made field goals and hit 6 of 22 from the 3-point line. Individually, only two SMU players -- Tyson Jolly and CJ White -- shot better than 35% from the field.

Cincinnati opened with an 8-0 lead in the first three-plus minutes of the game. By the time the first media timeout rolled around, the Mustangs had missed on their first four field goals. It took SMU nearly five minutes into the game before Ethan Chargois scored the team's first point, a free throw at the 15:15 mark.

SMU's first field goal of the night came from Jolly, who connected on a long jumper around the 13 1/2-minute mark. More than four minutes later, the Mustangs connected on their second field goal, a layup by White.

That was how the night went for SMU. And while the Mustangs have been the never-say-die team -- rallying from 15 points down at Vanderbilt, 11 down at home against Temple and, most recently, 12 down at Memphis -- there would be no comeback at Fifth Third Arena.

Cincinnati took its first double-digit lead, 13-3, with 12:08 on the clock, as Tre Scott hit a 3-pointer. SMU managed to trim the lead to four, but the Bearcats used a 9-0 run late to extend the lead. Cincinnati led, 33-19, at the half.

Defensively, SMU couldn't find an answer for Jarron Cumberland, who finished with 28 points and nine rebounds for Cincinnati. He made 9 of 13 shots from the field and sank four 3-pointers.

Jolly had 16 points for SMU and made 5 of 10 from the field. White, statistically, had his best offensive outing of the year, finishing with 11 points, six assists and four rebounds. White also hit 4 of 5 from the field and drained all three of his 3-point attempts.

No other SMU player finished with double figures in scoring. This is an SMU team that had four players enter Tuesday averaging double figures in scoring.

SMU now will return home and prepare for a home matchup Saturday against Tulane. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Moody Coliseum.