AUBURN | Texas A&M broke Auburn’s 19-game home winning streak with a 78-75 win on Senior Night. Missouri delivered an 85-73 road defeat to the Tigers shooting 55 percent from the floor and holding AU to 1 of 17 from 3-point range.

No. 20 Auburn will have to beat one of those two teams Friday to advance in the 2020 SEC Tournament and have an opportunity to defend last year’s title.

“We got outplayed in both the games,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “So whether it's a tough matchup or not, that will be to be determined. But obviously playing Texas A&M and Missouri did not bring out the best in us.”

In both losses, Pearl bemoaned Auburn’s lack of physical play, especially on the defensive end. In response, he put his team through two hard practices this week including a physical, full-contact workout Tuesday.

“(Texas A&M) came in here. They were more physical than we were. They shot more free throws here at Auburn Arena than we did,” Pearl said. “It was a good game, it was a close game. But we had a hard time stopping them. They did a great job in the second half. They scored on a number of possessions in a row. They were plus-13 for their scoring average, so we didn't defend them very well.

“And the same thing's probably true with Missouri at Missouri. We were 22-2 at the time. Went to Missouri ranked 11th in the country. And we were just exhausted. We had just come off of two or three straight overtime wins. We did not overlook Missouri at all. It was our first game without Isaac Okoro. They had a couple of guys that were out also. They played harder. They played more physically than we did. And so, we were 1-for-17 from three, we missed 16 free throws.”

The SEC Tournament begins Wednesday night at Bridgestone Arena with the bottom four teams in the league. No. 7 seed Texas A&M and No. 10 seed Missouri play Thursday at 6 p.m. CT with the winner playing Auburn Friday at 6 p.m.

“I feel as though we’re capable of winning both of those games against either team,” said Samir Doughty, who was named first-team All-SEC Tuesday. “It’s just about our preparation and getting ready to see who we play. It’s tough not knowing who we play days before the game, but I feel like that’s something we can adapt to and still win.”

Auburn is traveling to Nashville Wednesday afternoon and will practice in Bridgestone Thursday morning. The players will also take part in community service Thursday as they assist the victims of last week’s tornadoes.