Andrew Bynum had 22 points and 15 rebounds and slump-ridden Steve Blake hit two big 3-pointers during a decisive run as the surging Los Angles Lakers knocked off the host Dallas Mavericks 96-91 on Saturday night.

Pau Gasol scored 18 points for the Lakers (47-20), who have won nine of 10. Kobe Bryant finished with 14 on 6-of-20 shooting and left late in the third quarter with a sprained left ankle before returning in the fourth.

Dirk Nowitzki had 25 points and 10 rebounds and Shawn Marion added 25 and 12 for the Mavericks (47-19), who have dropped three of five and narrowly lead the Lakers for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference.

The Lakers were leading 65-63 when Bryant called a timeout and limped to the locker room with 1:52 left in the third quarter. Blake picked up his teammate by draining two consecutive shots from the arc with a Lamar Odom hoop in between that pushed the edge to 75-65.

Blake, who finished with nine points on three 3-pointers, entered shooting just over 30 percent from the floor and averaging 3.3 points in his last 10 games.

Los Angeles maintained a comfortable lead until the final minute, when the Mavericks pulled within 92-89 with 24.2 seconds remaining, but Jason Terry missed a short jumper and the Lakers salted the game away from the line.