ed just one point from its last two league ga

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Dallas Mavericks have struggled at times this season to close out. They didnt let that happen against the Memphis Grizzlies. Dirk Nowitzki scored 26 points, Brandan Wright added 17 and the Mavericks used a second-half surge to grab a 110-96 victory over Memphis on Wednesday night. "Weve obviously had a little trouble sometimes finishing games with leads, especially on the road," said Nowitzki, who was 10 of 14 from the field, including 3 of 4 from beyond the arc. "Teams are putting pressure on us and really getting into us, and we havent really responded well to that. But (against the Grizzlies) I thought we were solid." Samuel Dalembert and Monta Ellis had 14 points apiece and Dalembert added 10 rebounds. Vince Carter had 13 points and seven assists to help the Mavericks win their third straight game. Zach Randolph scored 25 points for Memphis, while Courtney Lee finished with 22. James Johnson added 17 and Nick Calathes scored 16 starting his third game in place of injured starting point guard Mike Conley. Dallas began its rally in the closing minutes of the third quarter and carried it into the fourth, eventually leading by as many as 17. The Mavericks are eighth in the Western Conference, two games ahead of the Grizzlies for the last playoff spot. Dallas also assured itself of winning the season series with its third win over Memphis this season. "If we would have won it, we would still be able to make the playoffs. If we lose, it doesnt change anything," said Memphis centre Marc Gasol, who had 12 points. "We have a lot of games left. . Of course, we would like to win every game, but if you lose, you move on. If you win, you move on. Theres no other way around it." The Mavericks dominated the paint, holding a 56-32 advantage in points and 35-32 edge on the glass. "To get 40, 50 points in the paint on them is impressive," Nowitzki said. "It means we were driving the ball and sharing. . Anytime we hold our own on the boards with this team and almost double them on points in the paint, thats a fantastic job for us." Memphis led 55-52 at halftime after having a basket taken away by a clock malfunction at the end of the half. Ellis scored with 10.1 seconds left, and on the ensuing Memphis possession Johnson appeared to hit a layup with less than a second left. But the clock didnt start properly following Ellis basket, and officials ruled that if it had, Johnson would not have gotten the shot off in time. "In the first half, we didnt defend very well," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. "We knew we were going to play better in the second half." The Mavericks took their first lead of the game on a 3-pointer by Nowitzki early in the third period, but then the game settled into poor shooting on both sides. The result was a quarter with six ties and three lead changes. Dallas broke a 71-all tie by closing the period with a 7-1 push for a 78-72 lead. That started a 14-3 Mavericks rally spanning the quarters. When Wright converted a 3-point play with 8:27 left, Dallas had stretched the lead to 14 points. The Mavericks 110 points snapped a Memphis string of seven games during which the Grizzlies had not allowed an opponent to surpass 90 points. "They always have five guys on the floor that you have to guard, and they can all shoot," Memphis coach Dave Joerger said. "I did a poor job at getting us ready against the multiple action pick-and-rolls that they ran. "Defensively, we were awful." NOTES: It took 7 minutes after the teams left the floor at halftime for officials to review the final play before disallowing Johnsons basket. ... Mavericks F Shawn Marion returned after missing two games with shoulder and rib contusions and had eight points. ... Calathes, who hadnt committed a turnover in the last two games starting for Conley, had six turnovers. ... Nowitzki has five straight games with at least 23 points. Cheapest Jerseys . PETERSBURG, Fla. Wholesale Jerseys China . And follow TSN.ca right through Wednesdays 3pm et trade deadline for all the updates. Blue line help for Red Wings? In addition to what he reported in Insider Trading, TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun wrote on ESPN. http://www.stitchedcheapnfljerseyschina.com/. The Calgary skip fell 10-8 to Swedens Oskar Eriksson in semifinal action Saturday and will face Switzerlands Peter de Cruz for the bronze medal (Saturday at 10pm et/7pm pt on TSN2). Cheap Jerseys China Authentic .com) - Cincinnati Reds pitcher Mat Latos had an arthroscopic procedure performed on his right elbow last week, the teams official site reported Wednesday. NFL Jerseys Factory . While coach Doc Rivers high-fived fans and pumped his fist at the crowd, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul quietly congratulated each other.Southampton, England (SportsNetwork.com) - Southampton and Manchester United will battle for third place in the Premier league table on Monday when the two sides square off at St. Marys. Manchester United enters the contest on a bit of a roll, having won its last four Premier League matches to improve to 25 points, but the clubs recent resurgence could be the result of simply facing inferior opposition - United has claimed just seven points from five matches against teams in the top-half of the table. The Red Devils escaped with a 2-1 win over Stoke City on Tuesday thanks to some late heroics from David De Gea, who made a couple of last-stitch stops on the goal line to deny the Potters a late equalizer. It was an otherwise drab performance from Louis van Gaals men, though the United boss continues to contend with a nightmare injury situation. Angel Di Maria and Wayne Rooney were absent from Tuesdays affair, but Marcos Rojo was welcomed back to the fold in the center of defense. Van Gaal confirmed Friday that Rooney will be available for Mondays clash, but Di Maria will miss the game as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury. Southampton also has had to contend with a couple of untimely injuries. Morgan Schneiderlin left Sundays battle with Manchester City at halftime, an exit that saw the Saints concede three second-half goals en route to a disappointing defeat. Southampton returned to action on Wednesday and held Arsenal in check at the Emiratess, but Toby Alderweireld had to be withdrawn to due injury.dddddddddddd Manager Ronald Koeman had used his three allotted substitutions, and 10-man Southampton ultimately leaked a late goal to come away from north London empty-handed. The Saints enter the weekend in third place, but a loss to United, paired with other results from the weekend, could drop them to fifth. Saturdays action will commence with Chelsea looking to extend its lead atop the table. The Blues will travel to St. James park to face a Newcastle side that has managed just one point from its last two league games. Manchester City will hope to keep pace with Chelsea when it welcomes Everton to the Etihad on Saturday. City sits in second place in the table, six points adrift of the Blues, while Evertons solitary win from its last three outings leaves the club in 11th place. Arsenal claimed a dramatic win over Southampton last time out and will aim to keep the momentum going on Saturday when it heads to the Britannia to face Stoke City, and Liverpool will hope to secure a third straight league win when it hosts Sunderland at Anfield. Rounding out Saturdays action, Hull City will play host to West Bromwich Albion, Crystal Palace will travel to White Hart Lane to face Tottenham and Burnley will battle QPR at Loftus Road. On Sunday, seventh-place Swansea City will travel to Upton Park to face fifth- place West Ham United while Aston Villa will host last-place Leicester City. ' ' '