MILWAUKEE (AP) – Nick Van Exel had season highs with 26 points and six 3-pointers, and Zach Randolph added 22 points to lift the Portland Trail Blazers to a 104-95 victory over the reeling Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.

Van Exel, in his 12th season, ranks fifth on the NBA career list in made 3-pointers. He hit his 1,400th after taking a pass from Zach Randolph and connecting from 27 feet early in the third quarter, giving the Trail Blazers a 58-47 lead.

He left the game after three quarters but returned with 2:25 left in the fourth after the Bucks trimmed the deficit to eight points. Randolph sank two free throws, and Van Exel made consecutive 3-pointers to stop the Bucks’ rally.

Derek Anderson and Darius Miles each had 14 points for Portland, which went 3-3 on its six-game, nine-day road trip.

Mike James scored a season-high 22 points and Desmond Mason added 16 and Joe Smith 14, but it wasn’t enough as the Bucks lost their fifth straight.

The Bucks, who have five players on the injured list, started the season 3-1 but have gone 3-15 since.

Milwaukee didn’t get any help from starting guards Michael Redd and Maurice Williams, who were held scoreless until Redd – the team’s leading scorer – made two meaningless baskets in the closing minutes.

Damon Stoudamire, who had a career-high 33 points in Portland’s 110-98 victory over Milwaukee on Nov. 19, scored eight in 24 minutes on Wednesday.

Randolph’s two free throws gave the Blazers a 73-53 lead with 3:51 left in the third. The Bucks closed the quarter with a 10-4 run, but the Trail Blazers led 77-63 going into the final quarter.

Van Exel, averaging eight points a game, had 12 in the first quarter of his fourth consecutive start at point guard. His three 3-pointers helped the Trail Blazers take a 52-45 lead at the half.

Notes: Bucks center Dan Gadzuric had five dunks in the first quarter, almost doubling his average of 5.6 points a game. … Trail Blazers forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim missed his fifth consecutive game because of a hyperextended right elbow. … The Bucks slipped to 1-8 against the Western Conference.

AP-ES-12-22-04 2236EST