Greg Oden challenged himself.

Weary of play even he perceived as inconsistent, the Trail Blazers’ 7-foot center made a conscious decision to break out.

The result was Monday night, when he scored a career-high 24 points and had 15 rebounds in Portland’s victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.

“I just wanted to start stepping up my game,” he said. “Being inconsistent, I’ve been saying that all year. It’s time to change that.”

Oden didn’t just become more confident and aggressive, he seemed to snap out of a funk that had largely clouded his rookie season so far. He high-fived fans after the game, then smiled and joked with reporters gathered around his locker.

“It feels good,” he said. “I convinced myself that when I’m out there I play good, and when I’m not, I don’t. This was one of those times it showed.”

Oden was the top pick in the 2007 NBA draft. His rookie year was delayed when he had microfracture surgery on his knee, a blow to Portland fans who saw him as the future of the franchise.

Despite his absence on the court last season, the big man still had a big profile with the Blazers. He became known for his toothy grin on the bench, an affable manner and even his humorous blog posts.

This season, however, the happy-go-lucky Oden vanished. He injured his foot in the Blazers’ opener and missed six games. When he did come back, his play was disjointed, and at times he seemed sullen. Smiles and jokes were rare.

Although Oden was going though typical first-year growing pains, there was tremendous pressure from fans and the media. Even rapper Lil’ Wayne proclaimed Oden a bust in a commentary for ESPN.com.

The Trail Blazers, for their part, stood steadfast in their intention to let Oden progress at his own pace.

“I think I put just as much pressure as anybody else would on a job they love to do, and wanted to do good at it,” he said.

His numbers are not bad for a rookie center. He is averaging 8.3 points, seven rebounds and 1.09 blocked shots. But he has struggled with fouls, as well as maintaining his energy level.

In Portland’s 102-85 victory over the Bucks, Oden had just two fouls.

The Bucks were without top rebounder Andrew Bogut, who missed his third straight game because of back spasms. Bogut is averaging 10.4 boards a game.

Bogut’s absence helped Oden, and the Bucks were forced to go with a smaller lineup when Dan Gadzuric got into foul trouble.

It was Oden’s team-high 12th double-double.

“It’s hard because the season’s so long and you’re going to have ups and downs, especially as a rookie,” Blazers guard Brandon Roy said. “But I think the good thing about it is that he’s definitely staying involved with trying to loosen up. It’s not like he’s going to happen to wake up one morning and be totally loose. He’s going to have to continue to work on it.”

Now the question is whether Oden can keep it up. The Trail Blazers host LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night.

“I’m not going to say I’m all the way disappointed with myself or down on myself,” he said, “I’d just say I need to step up my game.”

Greg Oden had just one word to describe how he felt after arguably his best game of the season.

“Hungry,” he said, showing off his goofy side Monday night after he scored a career-high 24 points and added 15 rebounds in the Portland Trail Blazers’ 102-85 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.

It was Oden’s team-high 12th double-double of the season. The 7-foot center, the top pick in the 2007 draft, is playing as a rookie after missing all of last season because of microfracture surgery on his knee.

Oden’s season got off to a bumpy start because of a foot injury in Portland’s opener. Later, rookie growing pains clearly got inside his head and he turned serious, a departure from the jokester who named his puppy Charles Barkley McLovin’ and sang karaoke — badly — to the delight of YouTube viewers.

But on Monday night, the grim expression he had recently worn vanished. He nodded in acknowledgement when he left the game and was rewarded with a standing ovation, and he wore a toothy smile when he high-fived fans on the way to the locker room.

“The attitude he had tonight was better. Some nights he a little down or has a little foul trouble,” Blazers guard Brandon Roy said. “Tonight he was vocal and stayed with it, so hopefully he can have some carry over from this game.”

LaMarcus Aldridge added 22 points and nine rebounds for the Blazers.

Richard Jefferson and Charlie Villanueva had 23 points each for the Bucks, who have lost two straight. Villanueva also had 10 rebounds.

Milwaukee had alternated wins and losses in its previous 13 games — the franchise’s longest streak without consecutive wins or losses. The Bucks were coming off a 101-92 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday.

The Bucks were without top rebounder Andrew Bogut, who missed his third straight game because of back spasms. Bogut is averaging 10.4 rebounds a game.

Bogut’s absence helped Oden, and the Bucks were forced to go with a smaller lineup when Dan Gadzuric got into foul trouble. It also helped that Oden finished with just two fouls in just over 35 minutes of play.

“Everyone seems to have their coming out party on us, and tonight it was Greg Oden,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said. “He just dominated us. We didn’t have any answers for him. We tried to front him, we tried to play behind him, and he hurt us.”

Oden said he felt comfortable with his shooting, and his teammates encouraged him.

“This feels good,” he said. “It gets my confidence up.”

The Blazers remained without starting point guard Steve Blake, who injured his right shoulder on the Blazers’ road trip. Sergio Rodriguez has been starting in his place.

Portland led by 11 points in the first quarter but the Bucks narrowed it to 31-30 midway through the second on Michael Redd’s layup. Milwaukee could not pull closer, and the Blazers led 45-40 at the break.

Portland extended the lead to 68-53 on rookie Jerryd Bayless’ 3-pointer in the third quarter.

Milwaukee made a move in the fourth, closing to within 76-71 on Villanueva’s 3-pointer. Travis Outlaw answered for the Blazers with a dunk and a free throw, and Portland kept the Bucks at bay the rest of the way.

The Blazers were playing the first of a three-game homestand after going 2-2 on an eastern trip.