Brentford had Lasse Vibe and Alan Judge to thank as Dean Smith's side beat visitors MK Dons 2-0 at Griffin Park.
Defender James Tarkowski had the host's first glimpse of goal in the opening 10 minutes, but could only fire the ball behind and into the stands.
Josh Murphy then had the first opportunity for MK Dons to take the lead, hitting high and wide from 10 yards out before Dean Bowditch forced Brentford stopper David Button into a save a minute later.
It was the home side which broke the deadlock, however, with Vibe latching onto a Jake Bidwell cross and heading in from six yards.
Brentford should have been two up before the 30-minute mark as Judge smashed the bar with a free kick, and the Dons then had Antony Kay to thank as he cleared a Konstantin Kerschbaumer effort off the line.
Vibe put the ball into the back of the net for a second time but saw the goal disallowed for offside, before Dons striker Nicky Maynard had his own finish chalked off for making his run a little too early, keeping the home side 1-0 up at the break.
The MK Dons crossbar was rattled for a second time early in the second half as Vibe looked for his second of the game from 25 yards, only to watch the ball thunder back off the woodwork.
Bees midfielder Judge finally doubled his side's lead with 71 minutes gone, scoring from 25 yards out following a corner clearance to ensure that the home side finished with all three points on offer.
The result leaves Brentford in 10th, outside the Championship playoffs by one point, with the Dons four points off the bottom of the table in 21st.
Miles Jolliffe
