ATLANTA — Chamique Holdsclaw scored 28 points and Ericka DeSouza had a double-double to help the Atlanta Dream beat the Detroit Shock 96-86 Friday night.

The Dream (4-4) snapped a two-game losing streak and matched their win total from last season, when they set a league record with 30 losses.

"It's about me getting into the flow and finding my shot," Holdsclaw said. "I felt better the more minutes I got and I was able to make some key shots. But most of all, our defense really stepped up."

Holdsclaw shot 10 for 15 from the field for Atlanta. DeSouza had 20 points and 13 rebounds and Nikki Teasley had 11 assists.

"Nikki really set the tone," Dream coach Marynell Meadors said. "She came out from the beginning and had us going, directing everyone in the right direction and making the passes to set others up for easy scores."

Rookie Shavonte Zellous scored 25 points for the Shock (1-5), who have lost four straight and are off to their worst start since opening 2002 with 13 losses. Katie Smith added 20 points.

Earlier this week, Detroit announced that top bench player Plenette Pierson will miss the rest of the season following shoulder surgery. She was the WNBA's Sixth Woman of the Year in 2007, averaging a career-best 11.9 points and 1.2 blocks last season.

Detroit guard Alexis Hornbuckle also was out with a concussion.

"We didn't attack," said Detroit coach Rick Mahorn, who is now 0-3 since replacing Bill Laimbeer in mid-June. "It's frustrating because we weren't making shots and defensively we have to get stops."