AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Vince Carter scored 22 points and Jason Kidd added a season-high 14 rebounds as the Nets won their eighth straight game, beating the Detroit Pistons 79-74 last night.

The loss ruined Detroit’s chance to go a calendar year without a regular season home loss in regulation – the last one had been a 95-88 defeat to Dallas on March 28, 2005.

The Nets broke a 56-all tie by scoring the first five points of the fourth period, and took a 69-61 lead on former Piston Cliff Robinson’s 3-pointer with 6:45 to go.

Chauncey Billups didn’t score in the first 43 minutes of the game,but had seven points in a 60-second stretch to pull Detroit within 74-70 with 3:49 to go.

Neither team could score until Richard Hamilton’s layup made it a twopoint game with 2:04 left. After both teams missed multiple shots, the Pistons called timeout with 15 seconds left.

Billups’s shot went in-and-out, but Carter could only split his free throws, giving the Pistons a chance to tie.

Kidd fouled Billups, who made both shots to make it 75-74 with 3.2 seconds left. Kidd then hit two free throws at the other end, and Carter knocked away Detroit’s inbounds pass to clinch the win.

Nenad Krstic added 16 points for the Nets,while Hamilton led Detroit with 19.

The Nets’ defense dominated the first quarter, as the Pistons scored a season-low 10 points on 5-of-24 shooting. New Jersey led by 13 at period’s end, but the margin was down to 38-35 at the half.

Detroit took its first lead of the game at 43-42 four minutes into the third, and the teams were tied at the end of the quarter.