TUCSON — Cincinnati's unbeaten start to the season came to an ugly end Saturday night.

Arizona dominated the second half and handed the Bearcats their first loss of the season, 34-7, at Casino Del Sol Stadium. Cincinnati fell to 4-1 after failing to score until under the final two minutes of a game that had long since been decided.

The frustrating part for the Bearcats was that they had opportunities to make it a very different game early.

Arizona opened the scoring with a 10-play, 75-yard drive capped by Kedrick Reescano's 10-yard touchdown run. Cincinnati's offense went three-and-out on its first possession, but the defense quickly gave the Bearcats a chance to respond when MJ Cannon intercepted Noah Fifita at the Arizona 32.

Cincinnati did nothing with it.

The Bearcats managed minus-3 yards on four plays, and Stephen Rusnak missed a 53-yard field goal that would have cut the lead to four.

Another opportunity came early in the second quarter. Cincinnati put together its best drive of the first half, marching 86 yards in 14 plays and reaching the Arizona 2. On fourth-and-goal, Brendan Sorsby's replacement, Jalen French IV, threw incomplete to Gavin Grover, turning the ball over on downs.

Instead of potentially tying the game, Cincinnati came away with nothing.

Arizona then drove 88 yards on 16 plays and added a field goal as time expired to take a 10-0 lead into halftime.

Any chance of another Cincinnati comeback disappeared quickly after the break.

The Bearcats punted on their opening possession of the third quarter, and Arizona responded with an 80-yard touchdown drive. During a 70-yard run by Adam Roberts, the ball was punched out from behind near the goal line. Antwan Peek Jr. then illegally batted the loose ball, wiping away what could have been a Cincinnati touchback and giving Arizona possession near the goal line. Fifita finished the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run to make it 17-0, a sequence that completely changed the momentum of the game.

Cincinnati again moved into Arizona territory on its next possession, but another drive ended on downs. The Wildcats immediately made the Bearcats pay, going 68 yards in six plays and scoring on Fifita's 24-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Phelps.

Just like that, a 10-point halftime deficit had become 24-0.

Arizona added a 35-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter and then put together a 13-play, 71-yard touchdown drive that consumed more than six minutes. Fifita connected with tight end Tanner Powell for a 5-yard touchdown with 5:21 remaining, pushing the lead to 34-0.

Cincinnati finally avoided the shutout on its final possession. French led the Bearcats 75 yards in nine plays and scored on a 2-yard quarterback run with 1:56 remaining.

By then, it meant little beyond changing the final score.

The Bearcats had spent much of the season showing an ability to survive slow starts. They erased a 21-point deficit against Miami and found ways to win games when things were not going particularly well.

There was no such comeback Saturday night.

Cincinnati wasted its chances in the first half, produced nothing offensively for most of the night and watched Arizona turn a competitive game at halftime into a blowout over the final 30 minutes.

For a team that entered the night unbeaten and beginning to build some momentum in Big 12 play, it was easily the poorest performance of the season.

What's Next

Cincinnati has a week off before returning to action Saturday, Oct. 17, at West Virginia. The Bearcats will travel to Milan Puskar Stadium looking to respond from their first loss of the season.