BOSTON (AP) – All Byron Scott needed to secure his record was a return trip to Boston.

Jason Collins set career highs with 19 points and 13 rebounds, and New Jersey beat Boston 94-87 on Friday night. It was the Nets’ eighth consecutive victory over the Celtics and their 130th win under Scott, the most for any coach in the franchise’s history.

Jason Kidd had 19 points and 10 rebounds for New Jersey, which had lost consecutive games since Scott tied Kevin Loughery for the mark. Scott is 130-122 in a little more than three seasons; Loughery coached five seasons.

“It means we’re 3-3, that’s all,” Scott said. “I’m trying to keep this team together until we get everybody back.”

The Nets beat Boston in their last three meetings of the 2002-03 regular season and then four in a row in the playoffs to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Back then, the Celtics had Antoine Walker and the Nets’ lineup included Kenyon Martin, Rodney Rogers and Lucious Harris.

After losing to the Nets in the playoffs two years in a row, the Celtics decided they needed to do something drastic. They traded Walker for Raef LaFrentz and a pile of potential.

New Jersey’s changes were less voluntary: Martin has a sprained left ankle, Rogers has a dislocated thumb, and Harris has lower back pain. But the result was the same.

“You’re always confident against teams you’ve had success against,” forward Richard Jefferson said. “We play well against them. We like playing against them, and I believe they like playing against us.”

Paul Pierce had 27 points and 10 rebounds, and Kedrick Brown scored a career-high 18 points for Boston, which has lost three in a row. But Pierce was 12-for-32 shooting, and he had eight turnovers – three in the final three minutes to set up New Jersey fast breaks.

“I think Paul feels a great deal of responsibility for our basketball team. And he has to find his way,” coach Jim O’Brien said. “I think he felt that he had to carry the load – which he does – but in a lot of different ways.”

The Celtics trailed by as many as 15 points early in the second half, 62-47, before tying the score 64-all on Mark Blount’s dunk with 2:59 left in the third quarter. It was tied 84-84 before Kidd scored driving through the lane, then Kerry Kittles had a pair of dunks to make it a six-point game with 1:45 left.

Boston never got closer than five points again.

The Celtics led 37-32 with 8:27 left in the second quarter before New Jersey scored 22 of the last 28 points in the half.

Kidd, Brandon Armstrong and Kittles hit consecutive 3-pointers for a 9-0 run that gave the Nets a 41-37 lead. New Jersey led by two points when it scored another nine straight – seven by Collins before Tamar Slay stole the ball from Jumaine Jones and slammed it in with less than a second left to make it 54-43 at halftime.

But Pierce took over for Boston, scoring 11 in the third quarter as the Celtics rallied.

Notes: Tony Battie replaced Mark Blount in Boston’s starting lineup for the first time this season. … Eric Williams missed his third consecutive game for the Celtics with a hyperextended right knee. … New Jersey’s Brian Scalabrine sat out with a strained hip flexor.

AP-ES-11-07-03 2316EST