NEW YORK (AP) – David Wells bounced off the mound with excitement. He had rebounded, and so had the New York Yankees.

With their AL East lead down to 11/2 games, the Yankees needed a win badly to blunt Boston. After Derek Jeter talked his way back into the lineup, Wells pitched his finest game this season and Bernie Williams woke up with his first home run since mid-August, propelling New York to a critical 3-1 victory Sunday.

“A game like this, it’s huge,” Wells said. “Those guys are coming in for the sweep – you want to try to get the momentum back, and that’s what we did today.”

Williams broke a scoreless tie – and a whole lot of tension – with a two-run homer in the seventh off Jeff Suppan (1-2). Wells took a shutout into the eighth inning, and Mariano Rivera got five outs in the final scheduled meeting this year between the teams.

New York (85-56) boosted its division lead to 21/2 games over Boston (83-59) with three weeks remaining.

“There’s a big difference between being three games back in the loss column than one,” Boston manager Grady Little said.

With owner George Steinbrenner in town and watching, New York had been blown out by a combined 20-3 in the first two games. Its lead, which had been 71/2 games on Aug. 20, was disappearing along with the summer heat.

Boston had won five straight and was on the verge of closing within a half-game of first – the Red Sox haven’t been that close in September since winning the division in 1995, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

While Suppan took a one-hitter into the seventh, the Red Sox twice advanced runners to third base in the middle innings. But Wells (13-6) got out of trouble each time, pumping a fist after escaping.

He had been winless in seven starts since July 19, and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre had publicly challenged his work ethic after a loss to the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 27. His spot in the rotation was in jeopardy.

“Boomer responds to challenges,” New York manager Joe Torre said. “There’s no bigger challenge since he’s been back here than this game today. He certainly restored order.”

After Kevin Millar doubled leading off the fifth and advanced on Jason Varitek’s groundout, New York moved the infield in and Gabe Kapler hit a weak grounder to third. Wells then struck out Damian Jackson.

Manny Ramirez doubled starting the seventh, and Millar walked with one out. Jeter then ranged into the shortstop hole to make a nice play on a grounder by Varitek, who just beat the relay throw to avoid a double play. After Kapler grounded out to third, Wells again rushed a fist across the air.

Wells had overcome his summer slump.

“You could see with his body language,” Torre said.

Suppan, who dropped to 0-5 against the Yankees, needed just 67 pitches to get through the first six innings as New York forced the outfield to handle just four balls – Jeter’s single in the fourth and three weak flyouts. But Suppan wound up throwing 33 pitches in seventh.

He walked Jorge Posada with one out, then allowed Williams’ first homer in 65 at-bats since Aug. 19. The Yankees’ bench seemed both stunned and relieved – no one jumped out of the dugout as the sellout crowd of 55,212 rocked to the “Disco Inferno” chorus of “Burn, baby, burn.”

While he has 11 homers this year, just two have been hit at Yankee Stadium. Williams, who had been in a 9-for-60 (.150) slump, doesn’t think the final three weeks will be easy.

“It’s going to be a grind,” he said. “Very hard.”

Torre said it was “inspiring” for Jeter to return from a rib cage injury that sidelined him for five straight games. The team captain wasn’t in the original lineup but persuaded the manager to let him play after two batting practice rounds Sunday. Jeter said he had “five or six” conversations with Torre over the weekend.

“I would have kept talking to him, over and over,” Jeter said. “Eventually, he’d have to cave in.”

To Torre, Jeter looked like he was “on a mission,” and the manager trusted the shortstop to tell the truth about his health.

“Once he realized the big picture, I’m an easy mark, I guess,” Torre said.

Jeter was 1-for-3 with a walk, and made a high throw for an error on Johnny Damon’s one-out grounder in the eighth. After Bill Mueller singled, Torre brought in Rivera to face Nomar Garciaparra.

Rivera, had gotten more than four outs for a save just twice previously this season, struck Garciaparra with the bases loaded a week earlier at Fenway Park to save an 8-4 win. This time, Garciaparra flied out to center field. Ramirez followed with a bloop to right that fell for an RBI single, pulling Boston to 2-1, but Rivera retired David Ortiz on inning-ending forceout.

Nick Johnson gave Rivera some margin for error with an RBI single in the bottom half off Alan Embree, who had allowed a bloop double to Alfonso Soriano.

Rivera gave up a leadoff single in the ninth to Millar before getting three straight outs for his 33rd save in 39 chances.

“It’s the heavyweight championship,” Embree said. “These teams have always played each other so tough, that why it’s the rivalry. What it comes down to now is how we do against the other teams.”