East Hartford - Forget about trying to take any positives from UConn's dismal performance Saturday night.

The Huskies plummeted to rock bottom.

The ugly numbers back it up.

Yes, it was as bad as the final score - Cincinnati 41, UConn 0

Most of the announced crowd of 24,012 bailed out before the American Athletic Conference game mercifully ended.

Smart move.

An anemic UConn offense gained only a paltry nine yards in the first half and finished with a season low 129 yards total offense. It was the first time that Huskies were shutout at home since losing to Navy 30-0 in 1978.

Cincinnati shredded the defense for 425 yards before going into blowout mode in the third quarter. Bearcat quarterback Gunner Kiel, who entered the weekend with a league-best 24 touchdown passes, added three more to his total before departing.

The Huskies used more quarterbacks (3) than they scored points.

It really didn't matter if Tim Boyle, who made his first start of the season, Chandler Whitmer or Deshon Foxx stood behind center. The Huskies had trouble getting out of reverse.

Cincinnati (7-3, 5-1) won its fifth in a row to remain in the hunt for the AAC championship. UConn (2-8, 1-5) lost for the seventh time in eight games.

Earlier this week, coach Bob Diaco talked about approaching the last three regular season games as an opportunity to get better.

Diaco had a bye week to prepare his team for Saturday's game. It didn't look like it.

The Huskies delivered a stink bomb, allowing 20 second quarter points to fall behind 27-0, their largest halftime deficit of the season.

In one of the few bright moments, redshirt junior safety Andrew Adams picked off a Kiel pass in the end zone to stop Cincinnati on its opening drive. It was his team-high fourth interception this season.

It only temporarily kept the Bearcats off the scoreboard. They scored on their very next possession, as Kiel hooked up with Nate Cole for a six-yard touchdown pass, completing a 14-play, 82-yard drive and taking a 7-0 lead with 1:29 left.

With the touchdown, UConn has been outscored 94-16 in the opening quarter this season.

The game quickly got out of hand in the second quarter.

Diaco continued to rotate quarterbacks, with Boyle (13-for-21, 70 yards) receiving the majority of the snaps. Whitmer (1-for-5, 11 yards, one interception) was ineffective, too, in limited action.

Cincinnati increased the lead to 14-0 when freshman running back Mike Boone took a direct snap and easily scored from three yards out. Freshman Andrew Gantz added two field goals - 32 and 44 yards - and Kiel tossed a two-yard TD pass to senior tight tend Jake Golic, who's from West Hartford.

In the first half, UConn was outgained 248-9.

The second half featured more of the bumbling Huskies.

To add to his team's misery, Foxx fumbled away a punt deep in his own end. Three plays later, Kiel connected with Johnny Holton for an 18-yard touchdown pass for a 34-0 lead.

It was easily UConn's worst loss of the season.

Earlier this week, Diaco called his rebuilding job a monumental undertaking. It certainly looks that way.

The Huskies need to win their two remaining games - at AAC leader Memphis Saturday and home against winless SMU on Dec. 6 - to top last year's win total of three.

Before the game, UConn announced that linebacker Jefferson Ashiru, who started eight of the first nine games, has left the team and will not return. Receiver Kamal Abrams also departed during the bye week.

g.keefe@theday.com

Twitter: @GavinKeefe