Nowitzki, Mavs take 2-0 lead over Grizzlies

Dallas, TX (Basketball News) - Dirk Nowitzki dropped in a game-high 31 points on 9-of-19 shooting from the field, as the Dallas Mavericks easily defeated the Memphis Grizzlies, 94-79, in Game 2 of their first-round series at American Airlines Center.

Dallas now leads the best-of-seven set, 2-0, as the series shifts to Memphis with Game 3 scheduled for Saturday at FedExForum.

Jason Terry added 16 points and was 3-of-6 from beyond the arc for fourth- seeded Dallas, which shot 44.9 percent from the field for the game. Terry also dished out a game-high nine assists.

Josh Howard netted 12 points in the first quarter and finished with 17 points and six rebounds.

Pau Gasol poured in 16 points, grabbed seven rebounds and had five assists for fifth-seeded Memphis, which is still searching for its first-ever playoff victory.

Memphis is appearing in the postseason for the third straight year. The Grizzlies were swept in 2004 by San Antonio and by Phoenix in the 2005 playoffs.

Bobby Jackson scored 12 points off the bench while Eddie Jones had 11 points in the loss.

The Mavs led for most of the game and after pulling away were never seriously threatened.

Behind Howard’s 12 points in the first quarter, Dallas held a slim 32-31 advantage after one.

A 10-0 surge by the Mavericks, capped by a Nowitzki free throw, pushed Dallas to a 56-43 advantage at halftime. Dallas outscored Memphis 24-12 in the second quarter.

At halftime, Nowitzki led the way with 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor as the Mavericks shot 54.3 percent from the field as a team.

Gasol had 10 points at the break for Memphis, who turned the ball over 10 times in the first half.

Dallas opened the third quarter with an 8-2 run that Terry ended with a three- pointer off the right wing from a Nowitzki pass to give the Mavs a 64-45 lead. The Mavericks went on to outscore the Grizzlies 20-13 in the third period to take a 20-point lead at 76-56 into the final quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Memphis used a mini 6-2 run to cut the deficit down to 15 points, 86-71, with about 5 1/2 minutes left.

A layup by Jackson with 2:10 remaining made it a 13-point game, but the Grizzlies were unable to get any closer the rest of the way.

Game Notes

Nowitzki was 12-of-14 from the free-throw line as Dallas was 28-of-36 from the charity stripe...Erick Dampier had eight points and six rebounds off the bench for Dallas...Memphis turned the ball over 20 times after not having any at the end of the first quarter...Mike Miller had nine points and five boards off the bench for the Grizzlies.