High-scoring Saint Mary’s made only one field goal in the final 12 minutes, but still managed to hold off host Santa Clara 65-59 on Thursday night.

Mickey McConnell led all scorers with 25 points for the No. 23 Gaels (21-4, 9-1 West Coast Conference). His 3-pointer capped a 7-0 run as the Gaels built a 54-41 led with just over four minutes to play.

Saint Mary’s then got careless in the final minutes, and Santa Clara (15-11, 5-4 WCC) cut the deficit to four points on a couple of occasions but could get no closer.

Rob Jones had 10 points and 16 rebounds for the Gaels, who entered the game averaging more than 81 points.

Santa Clara led by 10 points in the first half, but Saint Mary’s went on a 23-7 run to end the half and led 30-24 at the break.

Kevin Foster paced the Broncos with 25 points, and broke the school’s single-season record for 3-pointers with 86.