STORRS, Conn. -- The Cincinnati Bearcats woke up Sunday morning knowing they were locked into the No. 2 seed in the upcoming American Athletic Conference tournament. The Bearcats could not tie SMU for the regular-season championship, and there was no shot at the No. 1 seed.

Good day to just ease through the season finale against Connecticut? No way. The 18th-ranked Bearcats, under the direction of coach Mick Cronin, are still striving to be the best they can be as the postseason begins.

"Our coach wouldn't allow it," junior forward Gary Clark said after recording a double-double (17 points, 14 rebounds) to lead Cincinnati to an impressive 67-47 victory at Gampel Pavilion. "We watched Butler losing at home the other day, kind of in the same situation. We still wanted to finish this season the right way for our seniors and for our team to get better. There's still a lot of room to get better."

SMU (27-4, 17-1) wrapped up the No. 1 seed Saturday with a 103-62 win over Memphis. The Bearcats split the regular-season series with the Mustangs and there is no doubt both sides would enjoy a rubber game at the XL Center in Hartford next Sunday for the AAC championship.

Freshman swingman Jarron Cumberland came off the bench for 15 points as Cincinnati (27-4, 16-2) made a statement against the Huskies. Sophomore Jacob Evans III added 12 points. But defense, as always, made the difference for Cincinnati.

"You're going to go play," Cronin said. "So, like Herm Edwards said, 'Play to win the game.' You've got to do it and try to improve. Right now I'm focused on getting the guys ready who are coming off the bench. I think they are the key."

UConn (14-16, 9-9) was held to season lows in field-goal percentage (31.3 percent) and field goals made (15) in the loss. A 62-46 loss to Houston on Dec. 28 was the only game this season the Huskies scored fewer points.

Guard Rodney Purvis celebrated his Senior Day at UConn with 15 points. Senior center Amida Brimah had 11 points and six rebounds. Point guard Jalen Adams, with an ankle injury had four points, four assists and four turnovers. Freshman forward Vance Jackson (concussion) did not play,

"They took it to us on the offensive board," UConn coach Kevin Ollie said. "We've got to stay positive. We've got another season coming up. Nobody wants to go through a season like this. But things can be erased and we can still play our way into the NCAA Tournament."

UConn finished with its first losing record in the regular season since 1986-87, Jim Calhoun's first season as coach. The Huskies could have clinched the No. 5 seed in the AAC tournament with a win. Instead, the Huskies wound up with the No. 7 seed.

The Huskies, who fell to 4-3 at Gampel Pavilion this season, found themselves playing from behind immediately and that is rarely a pleasant predicament against Cincinnati's aggressive and physical style.

"Our goal is to win the conference," Cumberland said. "That's what we work for and coach is going to keep pushing us for it."

NOTES: UConn held Senior Day ceremonies before the game for G Rodney Purvis, F Kentan Facey and C Amida Brimah. The three have played a combined 349 games for the Huskies. Purvis is now 33rd on the UConn all-time scoring list with 1,243 points and a streak of 96 consecutive games played. Facey and Brimah were members of the 2014 national championship game. ... The victory tied Cincinnati's school record for conference wins in a season, set by the 1999-2000 Bearcats led by Kenyon Martin that finished 16-0 as champions of Conference USA. ... The AAC tournament begins Thursday at the XL Center in Hartford. UConn is the defending tourney champion.