National Basketball Association
Memphis 110, Dallas 96
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Where: FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
Officials: #47 Bennie Adams, #27 Mitchell Ervin, #13 Monty McCutchen
Attendance: 17381

MEMPHIS - If the Memphis Grizzlies continue to get the offensive balance and defensive intensity they displayed in Tuesday's 110-96 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, they might be able to withstand the temporary loss of power forward Zach Randolph.

Forcing 19 Dallas turnovers - including 12 steals - and limiting the Mavericks to 39 percent shooting, the Grizzlies built a 10-point halftime lead and maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half despite missing Randolph for a third straight game with a sore right knee.

Guard Mike Conley scored 21 points and forward Jeff Green added 19 to lead the Grizzlies, who placed seven players in double figures. Center Marc Gasol had 15 points and 10 rebounds.

"I feel like we're playing much better right now," Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger said. "Defensively, we really did a nice job of flying around. I know they scored 36 points in the fourth quarter, but I thought we did a real good job of contesting shots and not giving them second chances."

The Mavericks had no second-chance points in the first half and committed 12 of their 19 turnovers. Dallas shot 33 percent in the first half.

"We didn't get it done," said Mavs coach Rick Carlisle. "We did a poor job with ball protection in the first half (allowing 11 points on 12 turnovers)."

Mavs forward Chandler Parsons called the sloppy execution "very uncharacteristic of us."

"We've got to take care of the ball much better," Parsons said. "We knew going in that's what they do. They're aggressive. They gamble."

Inserting Matt Barnes into the starting lineup in place of Randolph created a defensive energy Joerger said was effective. The Grizzlies had started 6-9 JaMychal Green in the spot, but Joerger said Green was "out of position" at power forward. Barnes, making his first start of the season, was a better fit.

"Matt has the experience of playing against (Mavericks forward) Dirk (Nowitzki)," Joerger said. "Matt's energy was really contagious for us to start the game."

Jeff Green, who returned to the starting lineup five games ago, also was effective. He scored eight of his points in the third quarter as the Grizzlies turned a 10-point halftime lead into a 22-point advantage. Memphis led by as many as 25 early in the fourth quarter.

"Jeff is picking and choosing his spots to be aggressive," Conley said. "We love him going north and south, getting to the rim, getting to the free-throw line. And we love him in the post. He is a mismatch problem. If he continues to be aggressive, that makes us that much more dynamic of an offensive team."

J.J. Barea and Raymond Felton each scored 16 off the bench to lead the Mavericks. Nowitzki finished with a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds, but struggled shooting (5-of-15). Zaza Pachulia also had a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds).

Playing without Randolph, the Grizzlies were beaten on the boards, but survived behind a dominating performance in the paint.

The Grizzlies finished with a 48 paint points, 26 more than the Mavs.

Green started a 14-4 run to end the third quarter with a follow slam and followed, a possession later, with a reverse dunk off an assist from Barnes. The Grizzlies led 82-60 at the end of the third quarter.

Memphis increased its advantage to 25 to open the final period when Green dropped in a 3-pointer. The Mavericks eventually rallied to trim the margin to 10 points on two occasions midway through the quarter before Memphis re-established control.

In the first half, the Grizzlies built a 14-point lead by taking advantage of poor shooting by Nowitzki (3-of-9) and the Mavs (13-of-39). Ahead 21-17 entering the second quarter, the Grizzlies scored 12 of the period's first 14 points and led, 33-19, on a 20-footer by Mario Chalmers.

A few minutes later, a 10-0 Mavs' run quickly trimmed the Memphis lead to three points (37-34). The run was ignited by an unlikely source: 3-pointers. Dallas had missed 10 of 11 3-pointers before the run, but Nowitzki and Wesley Matthews drained long-range shots to start the rally.

The Grizzlies closed the half with seven straight points, including a 3-pointer by Conley with 3.4 seconds to go for a 46-36 lead.

Memphis didn't shoot much better in the half (37 percent) and was as inaccurate from beyond the arc (2-of-10). The Grizzlies, however, made up for their lackluster shooting with 22 points in the paint.

NOTES: Mavericks F/C Dwight Powell has had a strong start to the season. The reserve, in his second NBA season, is averaging 10.4 points and 7.1 rebounds. "He worked extremely hard over the summer," said coach Rick Carlisle. "He did a great job in the summer league out in (Las) Vegas. This summer kind of got him started." ... Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger said it's still uncertain as to when reserve F/C Brandan Wright will return. Wright, out with a sore right knee, missed his eighth straight game Tuesday. "It could be a while," Joerger said. "And then (we'll) try to get back into a rhythm. It might be almost like starting over from training camp." ... The Grizzlies entered the game ranked first in the league in free-throw percentage (83.6). The NBA record of 83.2 was set in 1989-90 by the Boston Celtics. ... In four starts against the Grizzlies during the 2014-15 season, Mavs F Chandler Parsons averaged 19 points in 33.8 minutes.
Top Game Performances
 
Dallas   Memphis
Jose Juan Barea 16 Scoring Mike Conley 21
Jose Juan Barea 4 Assists Mike Conley 6
Dirk Nowitzki 10 Rebounds Marc Gasol 10
Zaza Pachulia 9 Free Throws Made Marc Gasol 7
Raymond Felton 1 Steals Mario Chalmers 5
Dwight Powell 2 Blocks Marc Gasol 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Dallas 96 39.0 11-34 25-28 22 48 6 4 19
Memphis 110 43.0 7-21 29-37 20 42 4 12 9
Upcoming Games
  • Memphis will play their next game on the road against Houston. The Grizzlies have a W/L % of .571 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Dallas will play their next game on the road against San Antonio. The Mavericks have a W/L % of .556 after a win and .667 after a loss.