NBA standings 2012: Grizzlies, Spurs widen lead over rest of Southwest Division

The Dallas Mavericks enter the Saturday night's division match up with the Houston Rockets looking to get back to .500 and take over third place in the Southwest Division. The Mavs are 9-10 after a Thursday night win in Phoenix and trail the Rockets, who are coming off a Friday night loss to the San Antonio Spurs, by a 1/2 game in the standings.

The Memphis Grizzlies and Spurs continue their stranglehold on the division. The Grizzlies are 14-3 after Friday night's victory in New Orleans. Memphis remained a game up in the loss column over the Spurs, who sit at 16-4. The Oklahoma City Thunder have also begun to pull away in the Northwest Division. The Thunder are 16-4 and have a 5 1/2 game lead over the Utah Jazz after they beat the Los Angeles Lakers in Oklahoma City last night.

In the Eastern Conference, the Miami Heat hold a 1/2 game lead over the Atlanta Hawk in the Southeast Division, while the New York Knicks lead the Brooklyn Nets in the Atlantic Division by three games. The Chicago Bulls at 10-8, lead the woeful Central Division by one game over both the Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks.

Here's a look at the complete Southwest Division standings.