HOUSTON, Feb. 12 (Ticker) -- Without Steve Francis the Houston Rockets' offense was sloppy and inefficient. Against the Memphis Grizzlies it didn't matter.

Cuttino Mobley rebounded from a slow start to score 10 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter as the Rockets rallied for an 85-78 victory over the struggling Grizzlies.

Francis, who leads Houston in scoring, rebounding and assists, continues to battle migraine headaches that sidelined him for the fourth time in the past month. The Rockets were in complete disarry for three quarters without their lone All-Star.

"We missed Steve considerably," Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. "I make probably 30 plays a game for him and it's hard to keep the continuity when I have to change that all up."

NBA TV highlights from Grizzlies-Rockets: 56k | 300k Shane Battier found the going tough against Rocket D, missing 10 of the 17 shots he took. Bill Baptist NBAE/Getty Images

"We're something like 2-17 without Steve and that just says a lot about how much he is missed," Mobley said. "But a win like this shows that we can pull together for a win."

The Rockets were actually 1-20 without Francis in the lineup this season while sporting a 15-14 mark with him on the floor. They seemed on their way to yet another loss without him before Mobley, who took a season-high 29 shots, rediscovered his offense in the fourth quarter.

Mobley made just 6-of-21 shots through the first three quarters but sank his first attempt of the fourth, a 22-foot jumper that gave Houston the lead for good, 65-63, with 9:56 remaining.

The teams traded baskets twice before the Rockets scored six straight points. Mobley capped the burst with a driving layup to give Houston its largest lead, 75-67, with 3:26 left.

The Grizzlies pulled within 77-74 on Tony Massenburg's dunk with 31 seconds left and Mobley was whistled for an offensive foul on the inbounds pass. But Mobley made up for the miscue by stealing Grant Long's inbounds pass.

He raced down court and made a layup as he was mauled by Memphis rookie Shane Battier, who went tumbling into the crowd. Mobley made the free throw to make it 90-74 with 28 seconds to go.

"I was just looking for a steal to slow them down," Mobley said. "But I got it and took off and made the easy basket."

"(Mobley) had a great play," Tomjanovich said. "He stole the ball and got fouled and really put the game away."

Houston made 5-of-6 free throws in the final 21 seconds to secure its third win in 10 games.

Moochie Norris scored 21 points and Kenny Thomas added 12 and 14 rebounds for Houston, which improved to 12-1 all-time against the Grizzlies at the Compaq Center.

"Without Steve I knew I really had to step up my game and get comfortable driving to the basket," Norris said. "I need to be scoring those kinds of points."

Rookie Eddie Griffin scored 10 points, while Kelvin Cato grabbed 13 rebounds for the Rockets, who shot just 36 percent (30-of-83) but committed just 15 turnovers without their best ball-handler.

"We knew we were going to come in here with a strong defensive game," Norris said. "Without Steve we knew we were going to have to control the ball. It was tough but we came back and found a way to get it done. We only shot 36 percent and that makes it real tough."

Rookie Pau Gasol had 25 points and 11 rebounds and Battier scored 16 points for Memphis, which has lost eight of its last 10 games.

Stromile Swift sat out with a right toe sprain and Jason Williams was sidelined due to ingrown toenails. Brevin Knight left with a sprained ankle in the fourth quarter, forcing the 6-8 Battier to play point guard down the stretch.

"I pride myself on being a renaissance man but this is getting ridiculous," he said. "My job is to play basketball and to do what the coaches say. I pride myself on doing a lot of things on the court, but a year ago I never thought I'd be bringing the ball up the court against Cuttino Mobley."

The Grizzlies shot 43 percent (35-of-81) and made just 7-of-12 free throws.

"I don't think we played smart and were focused on what we were supposed to do," Grizzlies coach Sidney Lowe said. "We knew what they do well, which is (isolate) you and rebound. We simply didn't play very well."