By DAVE CAMPBELL
AP Sports Writer

MINNEAPOLIS(AP) -- The recovering big men bumped and banged around
the basket all night, and a beat-up Andrew Bogut got the better
of Al Jefferson.

Bogut gave the defense-first Bucks plenty of muscle at both ends
with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Milwaukee used a
third-quarter surge to top the worn-down Jefferson and the
Minnesota Timberwolves 87-72 on Friday.

Returning to form after a lower back injury cost him half of
last season, Bogut was consistently aggressive at taking the
ball to the rim and hounding Jefferson in the lane.

"He looks much more like himself. He's moving around well,
facing up people," Bucks coach Scott Skiles said. "He's got a
quick first step, is making some nice reads, some nice passes.
We're going to him, and he's being productive right now."

That's just the opposite of what's happening with the
Timberwolves and their star center. Still trying to find his
groove after a knee injury knocked him out last winter,
Jefferson went 3 for 12 from the floor, finished with a
season-low eight points and left the locker room without meeting
reporters.

Coach Kurt Rambis was more upset with the rest of the team for
not running the offense right during an especially lethargic
effort after halftime. The Wolves were outscored 31-14 in the
third quarter after leading 38-33 at the half, and Rambis had a
sore throat from yelling at them so much to move the ball around
the perimeter.

"There's plenty of opportunities for Al to get the ball on the
backside of the offense if we just swing it," Rambis said. "But
we can't continue to grind and grind and grind and hold and
hold. They're just leaning on Al. They're wearing him out."

Luke Ridnour had 16 points off the bench, offsetting the first
bad game for Brandon Jennings, who went 4 for 16 from the field
and finished with nine points against his friend and fellow
rookie point guard Jonny Flynn. Jennings averaged 22 points over
his first three games.

Ridnour had nine points in the fourth quarter and swished a
3-pointer with 6:23 remaining to match Milwaukee's biggest lead,
77-60, and keep Flynn - who had a career-high 20 points - from
bringing Minnesota back like he did against New Jersey in the
season opener.

"Andrew opens it up down there," Ridnour said. "Once a couple
guys start hitting shots, confidence goes up."

Missing Michael Redd, the Bucks need Bogut to keep this up. He
got help inside from Hakeem Warrick, who had 11 points in the
third quarter, and Dan Gadzuric, who also bothered Jefferson
with some physical defense. The Bucks had a 36-22 advantage in
paint points and outrebounded the Wolves 51-38.

As for Bogut's back?

"It's OK," said the shaggy-haired Aussie and 7-foot former first
overall draft pick. "There were some speed bumps along the way,
but it's normal. I haven't played basketball since January. ...
It's been progressing, but there's still a long way to go."

The Wolves shot 5 for 18 in the second quarter. During the
dreadful third, they went 6 for 18. The Bucks didn't lead until
the third quarter, but they built their first 17-point lead just
2 1/2 minutes into the fourth.

The Bucks, who've played only one home game, took a good mood
and a 2-2 record back to Wisconsin where they'll start a
six-game homestand Saturday.

"The guys regrouped at halftime, and you could tell right when
the ball was inbounded in the third quarter we were at least
going to go for it," Skiles said. "We picked up our level of
aggressiveness. It's a big win for us."

After winning their opener, the Wolves have lost five straight.
Two straight close ones to the Clippers and Boston seemed to sap
their effort. Flynn blamed himself for that second-half lapse,
as the point guard.

"We came out stagnant as an offense, and that's a big thing in a
system like the triangle," he said. "We have to keep moving. We
have to keep the ball moving. We have to keep some type of
energy."

Credit the Bucks, too.

"I believe Scott Skiles had something to do with that. I
would've loved to hear what he had to say in the locker room,"
Flynn said.

NOTES: Redd, expected to miss two weeks, had his original
diagnosis of a strained tendon in his left knee affirmed by a
doctor, Skiles said. He'll be evaluated at the end of next week.
"We're hoping that it's on the short end rather than on the long
end, and we'll know a lot more when they look at it again,"
Skiles said. ... The 14 points in the third for Minnesota were a
season low for any quarter.