Milwaukee » For the first time in weeks, if not months, the Jazz ran into a team Friday that has been on as scorching a climb up the standings in recent weeks as they've been in going 23-6 since Jan. 9.

Against Milwaukee, the Jazz came up one offensive rebound and one missed three-pointer short in the final 30 seconds and fell 95-87 at Bradley Center as a result, with the Bucks winning for the 11th time in 12 games in a showdown between two of the NBA's hottest teams.

Ersan Ilyasova put back Andrew Bogut's miss for Milwaukee with 27.2 seconds to play, Mehmet Okur missed a potential go-ahead three-pointer with 19.9 seconds remaining, and the Bucks brought the Jazz's four-game winning streak to an end.

"We didn't play as tough as we needed to at the right times and they did," said Wesley Matthews, who finished with six points in his Wisconsin homecoming.

The Jazz missed all 10 three-pointers they attempted, and Deron Williams admitted afterward that Bucks rookie Brandon Jennings had bested him. Williams finished with 11 points but went 3-for-12; Jennings put up 23 points and six assists.

It was a hard-fought loss for the Jazz -- who came back to lead after trailing by 12 points with 3:57 left in the third quarter -- yet a costly loss nevertheless. With Denver beating New Orleans, the Jazz now trail the No. 3 Nuggets by two games in the Western Conference.

The Jazz also lost Andrei Kirilenko to a strained left calf in the third quarter. Kirilenko spent several minutes stretching his calf on the bench but couldn't return. "It feels like little needle pinch me when I'm walking from inside," he said.

Kirilenko is questionable to play Sunday when the Jazz finish their four-game trip at Oklahoma City. Williams, meanwhile, aggravated an injury he sustained to his left shoulder late in Tuesday's victory in Chicago and had it wrapped in ice afterward.

The Bucks owned an eight-point lead at halftime and were in control 68-56 with four minutes left in the third quarter when John Salmons (24 points) connected on a three-pointer after Milwaukee rotated the ball around the arc to him.

But the Jazz climbed back as the Bucks missed their next 11 shots and went 7:22 without a field goal. C.J. Miles made a three-point play and went in for a dunk on the break as part of a 16-3 run that pushed Utah into the lead.

That was just the first hill in a roller-coaster fourth quarter for both teams. The Bucks trailed by three, then used a 9-2 run to take an 84-80 lead as Carlos Delfino collapsed the Jazz's defense by driving into the lane and finding Jennings for a three-pointer.

The Bucks led 87-82 with 1:40 left, but the Jazz answered with five straight points. Jennings drove with 42.9 seconds remaining and was blocked by Okur. Miles attacked the basket, was fouled and converted at the line to knot it 87-87.

The Jazz nearly came up with the stand they needed as Bogut (16 points, 12 rebounds) missed over Okur, but Ilyasova came in for the rebound and scored. At the other end, Williams intended to work a pick-and-roll but looked cross-court to Okur instead.

Okur, who went 7-for-7 with 14 points in the first half, was open for the three-pointer but couldn't connect.

After Salmons hit two free throws with 19.6 seconds left to make it 91-87, Boozer (26 points, 14 rebounds) lost the ball trying to go up inside on Bogut. No foul was called, Boozed voiced his frustrations and was ejected by referee Rodney Mott.

Jennings, meanwhile, commanded the floor after finishing with just five points on 1-for-8 shooting in a Jan. 8 loss in Utah. With Williams frequently helping off him, Jennings hit three three-pointers, got free for layups and pushed the ball all night.

"He would see me go help and he would cut right to the basket and I lost him a couple times," Williams said. "That's just bad defense, overcommitting on my part. He hit a couple good threes. He just played well tonight, played within the system. He played great."

rsiler@sltrib.com