Mississippi State 74, Auburn 71 (OT): Craig Sword made two free throws with 36 seconds remaining in overtime and Roquez Johnson made one with 19.4 seconds left as the host Bulldogs clinched the No. 13 seed in next week’s SEC tournament.

Colin Borchert had 20 points and 13 rebounds, his first double-double as a Bulldog, and Sword finished with 19 points, five rebounds and six assists as Mississippi State (9-21, 4-14 SEC) improved to 7-7 at home. Fred Thomas scored 10 points for the Bulldogs, who came into the game having lost 14 of their last 15.

Auburn (9-22, 3-15), which will be the No. 14 seed, was led by Chris Denson, who came off the bench and scored a career-high 24 points with nine rebounds. Rob Chubb had 18 points and seven rebounds before fouling out with 36 seconds left in OT and Frankie Sullivan chipped in 12 points for the Tigers, who have lost 15 of their last 16, including nine straight.

Mississippi State jumped out to a 12-5 lead on Borchert’s second 3-pointer. Auburn took its first lead, 15-14, on Chubb’s jumper and maintained the lead until the Bulldogs went on a 4-0 run to end the first half and tie the score at 24 going into intermission.

Mississippi State tied the score at 65 on Borchert’s fourth 3-pointer with 18 seconds remaining, and Denson missed a jumper with one second left to force overtime. Mississippi State and Auburn met for the first time this season and the Bulldogs improved to 66-72 in the series.

GAME NOTEBOOK: There were 12 ties and 16 lead changes in regulation. … Mississippi State has beaten Auburn in 12 of the last 13 games at Humphrey Coliseum. … The Bulldogs played without reserve junior G Jalen Steele, who leads the team in scoring (10.1), after he suffered a season-ending torn ACL and meniscus in his right knee against South Carolina on Wednesday.