DALLAS, March 1 (UPI) -- Dirk Nowitzki scored 13 of his 28 points in the decisive third quarter and Adrian Griffin added 17 points off the bench Saturday night as the Dallas Mavericks rolled to a 114-87 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Memphis has lost the last 11 meetings with Dallas and had little chance of ending the slide with three key players sidelined. Forward Lorenzen Wright was not with the team due to a death in the family and guards Mike Miller and Michael Dickerson did not make the trip due to injuries.
Despite their lack of players, the Grizzlies had a 59-52 lead with 9:33 left in the third quarter. But the Mavericks responded with a 19-3 run, highlighted by 10 points from Nowitzki.
The Mavericks had an 80-66 lead entering the fourth quarter and scored 34 points in the final 12 minutes.
Griffin, who was activated from the injured list before the game, made eight of eight shots in 21 minutes as Dallas avoided a three-game losing streak.
Pau Gasol scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Stromile Swift added 16 and nine for the Grizzlies, who have not defeated the Mavericks since April 16, 2000.
