Ole Miss is heading into the Southeastern Conference Tournament on a sour note.

Auburn stormed back from an early 13-point deficit Sunday, taking its first lead of the game with 1:51 remaining, and hung on to beat Ole Miss 46-43 in the regular-season finale for both teams.

Ole Miss (12-17, 2-14 SEC), the No. 12 seed for the SEC Tournament, will face Arkansas in the first round on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in Nashville, Tenn. Auburn (13-16, 5-11) will play Florida at noon Thursday.

“I thought we were in control for the most part. We did not manage the game the last three minutes,” Ole Miss coach Renee Ladner said. “We had a lot of young players on the floor, and turnovers and missed box outs, and I thought those were missed opportunities.”

Nikki Byrd scored 17 points for the Lady Rebels on Sunday, and Valencia McFarland had 10. They combined for just 12 points in the second half, however, and Auburn took advantage. Hasina Muhammad hit a layup to tie the game at 30 with 12:34 left.

Ole Miss regained the lead on Amber Singletary’s free throw 45 seconds later and held it until less than two minutes remained. Tyrese Tanner hit a free throw to tie it, 43-43, at the 2:17 mark, then put Auburn ahead for good with two more free throws with 1:50 left.

Ole Miss was held scoreless for the last three minutes. It only took one shot in that span — a missed 3-pointer by McFarland — and committed two turnovers. Auburn also grabbed four offensive rebounds in the final stretch.

Muhammad finished with 19 points for Auburn, and Tanner had 14 points and seven rebounds.

“I thought in the last few minutes, our eyes got big and we played not to lose. I thought for the most part of the game we played to win, and then when things got tough we played not to lose,” Ladner said. “They have been through a very trying season, and again, I had three freshmen, a sophomore and a senior on the floor. I think as they grow older and mature, they will understand that they will get better and better.”