WALTHAM - It comes down to the 26 remaining regular-season games. The Celtics stand three games back in the loss column from second place in the East and three losses ahead of 10th. Certainly, they want home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs, but there's little room for error just to make the postseason.

Translation: They cannot afford to squander leads of 20, 18, and 14 points, as they did during their recent seven-game road trip. They must be more aggressive on the glass, and execute, not implode, down the stretch.