NASHVILLE — Ole Miss had pulled to within 60-57 on two JuJu Murray free throws.

There was about a 10-second differential between the game clock and the shot clock.

In a timeout, Chris Beard, his staff and his players made a decision. They elected to play defense, try to get a stop and then go for a tie on the ensuing possession, hoping to add five minutes to their Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinal with Auburn.

Johni Broome had another plan. The SEC Player of the Year scored the game-clinching bucket with 11 seconds left, giving Auburn a 62-57 lead over Ole Miss and pushing the Tigers to Saturday’s semifinals.

“We all made the decision,” Beard said. “The players believed in it, but they’re a veteran team, well-coached and they got the ball to the right player in the right spot and he made a contested shot. …It was the last play. His team had to make a play and he does it.”

“Johni carries us,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “He just puts us on his shoulders and he’s one of the best competitors I’ve ever had. He just hates to lose at anything and his teammates know that.”

Broome was the difference all day. Ole Miss (22-11) tied the game with a little more than six minutes left and then pulled to within one possession late. Every time, Broome made plays on both ends of the floor to kill the Rebels’ upset hopes.

“He was the difference in the game. In a one-possession game, he goes 23 (points) and 15 (rebounds). I think he’s worthy of all the attention and the awards he’s winning. You saw that today all the way down to the last play.”

Ole Miss, which had lost by 30 points at Auburn late last month, gave a tenacious effort on Friday, less than 24 hours after a dramatic win over Arkansas.

“There was a different level of focus on this game,” Ole Miss forward Dre Davis said. “There was a different level of focus and intensity and commitment to preparation. We were locked in on what we said we were going to do, and I feel like, for the most part, we did that.”

The Rebels’ problem Friday, in addition to Broome’s spectacular showing, was shooting. Ole Miss shot 38 percent from the floor and 17 percent from the 3-point line.

“When we go 4-for-21 from the 3-point line and most of those were good shots — a couple were late shot clocks — but I’d say 17 of the 21 were good shots that you have to take and have to make to beat Auburn,” Beard said. “If we make our normal 35 or 36 percent of 3s as a team, we’d have scored enough points to win.”

Davis and Sean Pedulla led Ole Miss with 12 points each. Malik Dia and Murray had 10 apiece.

Denver Jones added 13 for Auburn, which shot 45 percent from the floor and 29 percent from behind the arc.

“I didn’t think we got beat today,” Beard said. “I think we ran out of time. …I thought the effort was good today but when you play a team like this, you have to play well in almost every area. We took care of the ball, especially in the second half. We played good enough defense for the most part. We have to do a little bit better job on the backboards and we have to make some shots.”

Next up for Ole Miss is the NCAA Tournament. The Rebels will convene at Funky’s on the Oxford Square on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. Some 30 minutes later, they’ll learn their destination and opponent. It’ll be Ole Miss’ first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2019.

“We tell the players we want to be us,” Beard said. “Why? Because us is pretty good.

“We’re going to enjoy ourselves. We’re going to smell the roses, as we call it. Have some fun. Play with joy.”

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