Lineup changes; losing doesn't

MILWAUKEE - On a night when change swirled all around them, the Timberwolves provided a little of the familiar on the Bradley Center court.

With too many turnovers and too many missed shots down the stretch the Timberwolves lost for a fifth consecutive time, 94-88 to the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Wolves cut a seven-point deficit to one on Luke Ridnour's 17-foot jumper with 2 minutes left in the game, but the Bucks outscored the Wolves 5-0 the rest of the way. Brandon Jennings led the Bucks with 27 points, 16 in the second half, and Corey Maggette came off the bench to score 20. Kevin Love had 20 points and 17 rebounds for the Wolves. Michael Beasley, returning from an ankle injury, had 21.

"Throughout the ballgame, I thought our guys played hard," Wolves coach Kurt Rambis said. "It got to the point where we couldn't make a shot. We had an opportunity to get a lot of easy shots inside and give ourselves a chance to win, but we couldn't find a way to make a shot."

On a day in which the Wolves consummated their part in a three-way trade that sent Corey Brewer to New York and Kosta Koufos to Denver, the Wolves played with a short bench. Still, the game was tied at halftime and after three quarters. But the Wolves came out in the fourth quarter and hit on just 16 of 44 shots while turning the ball over 10 times, two stats the team just couldn't overcome.

"Tonight was a misstep for us," Kevin Love said. "We had our chances to win the game."

The Wolves finished with 17 turnovers (which led to 20 points), made just 20 of 31 free throws and shot 38.1 percent.

Carrying it over Rookie Wes Johnson struggled going into the All-Star break. The shooting guard failed to score in double figures in five of six games before heading to Los Angeles to play in the rookie-sophomore game. In that same stretch, he hit just 15 of 43 shots overall and went 2-for-15 on three-point shots.

But maybe he got his game back in L.A. Johnson came off the bench to score 25 points in 25 minutes in that game, making three three-point shots in the process. He said Tuesday that the experience might be just what he needed.

"It felt good just going out and playing," Johnson said. "That's the main thing I enjoyed, just being free, coming out and playing. And, you know, I think I found my rhythm again."

Despite a 5-for-14 shooting night, Johnson had a strong game Tuesday, scoring 14 points, grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out three assists.

Etc. • Shooting guard Martell Webster, whose been bothered by a sore back, played Tuesday. He said the key going forward is knowing when to come out of a game to avoid overstressing the back and then keeping the back loose with heat while on the bench.

• Point guard Jonny Flynn, who has been resting a sore groin and surgically repaired hip, missed his second game in a row Tuesday. He said he didn't know whether he'd be ready to play Wednesday.