HOUSTON - Candice Wiggins scored 27 points off the bench, but the Houston Comets ended a three-game losing streak with a 96-88 victory over the Lynx on Thursday.

Houston led 71-63 when Wiggins hit a three-pointer less than a minute into the fourth quarter.

The Comets responded with an 8-2 run capped by a jumper from Hamchetou Maiga-Ba with 5:05 left to put the game away.

Seimone Augustus finished with 17 points for the Lynx, Vanessa Hayden-Johnson had 14 and Kristen Rasmussen 10.

Houston opened the game with a 12-2 run, then extended the lead to 16-5 on a pair of free throws with 3:30 left in the first quarter.

Augustus finished off a 14-2 run by Minnesota, taking a 31-26 lead with 6:20 left in the first half. But behind Tina Thompson's 16 points before the break, the Comets took a 45-41 lead into halftime. Thompson scored 25 points.

Head coach Don Zierden of the Lynx (10-11) missed the game because of pneumonia, but he is expected to rejoin the team for Saturday's game in San Antonio.

ASSOCIATED PRESS