MILWAUKEE — By all appearances, the Milwaukee Bucks played well enough to win Wednesday night at the Bradley Center.

But these days, even that is not enough.

At least for one game, the Bucks shook the dysfunctional tag. But they head into the All-Star break and a seven-day vacation looking mighty disheveled after losing their fourth straight, a 111-107 loss to the New Orleans Hornets.

Peja Stojakovic hit a wide open 3-point basket with 15.1 seconds remaining to complete a perfectly executed play to give the Hornets a 109-107 lead.

The Bucks tried to mirror that play with their own, but Michael Redd forced a contested 3-point shot with 7 seconds left in their last gasp for victory.

"They flew at me," Redd said, recalling how 7-foot-1 Tyson Chandler came at him. "We were trying to win the game. It just didn't work."

The difference in the two plays is that Hornets point guard Chris Paul was able to turn on the dribble and get into the lane while Bucks point guard Mo Williams was cut off from the paint.

When the Bucks defense surrounded Paul, he found Stojakovic on the left side.

"A great play; they ran it to perfection," said Bucks guard Charlie Bell, who found himself pinned on a screen by Chandler and unable to catch up with Stojakovic. "I was thinking they might try to lob it to Chandler and I got sucked in a bit."

The Hornets head into the break with a 36-15 record, best in the Western Conference. The Bucks, however, are not feeling very good as they head into the break with a 19-34 record and their chances for the eighth and final spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs dwindling with every loss.

The Bucks played the game under a darker cloud than usual, one that developed Monday night when coach Larry Krystkowiak said that the players were working on their own agendas, not the team's agenda.

Then an Internet report added to the controversy, one that claimed Williams told center Andrew Bogut to shut up during a Tuesday team meeting.

"There's negativity floating around, but it's contrary to what is really floating around," said Krystkowiak, who said the incident never occurred. "We've got a solid group."

For the most part, the Bucks played solidly. They hit 50 percent (40 of 80) of their shots. They unselfishly dished off 29 assists. Six players reached double figures led by Redd's 30 points.

But the Hornets matched them, especially in shooting (43 of 78, 55.1 percent).

"They're the best team in the Western Conference and we played them down to the wire," Bell said. "We can take something positive out of that."

These days, that's what the Bucks are left with.