"We're just trying to do better," said forward Paul Pierce. "It's just the little things, the simple things that we have to do. It's a confident ballclub. We've been together for a while, and we're not worried about it. It's execution. If you're supposed to set a pick, set a pick; if you're supposed to cut hard, cut hard. Show on defense.

"We're still the same team. We're still learning. It's a long season, and we haven't hit our peak yet. We understand that it's a long season, but we want to try to get better every day. We feel upset that we lost three games in November -- at home. This is not a team that pushes the panic button, though. We just have to work to get ourselves back on the same page.

"It hurts to lose. I've been a competitor my whole career, but you still understand it's a long season, and there are going to be peaks and valleys."

Coach Doc Rivers said the trouble is the result of "just breaking execution. You start a play, and the next thing you know you're out of the play. You want your players to be free to see something. The player can absolutely be right and we can do 'this,' but if the other four don't know what 'this' is, then it can't work even if he's right. That's where we are at times.

"High basketball IQ -- those are the types of teams that do that, and then you just have to get them back to being a disciplined group, too, and they will be," Rivers added. "That's why I'm not as concerned as someone else would be, because they're a smart team, and that's one of the residual effects. We have to think as a team."

CELTICS 107, KNICKS 105 (OT): The Celts struggled against another weak team, but they managed to win when Kevin Garnett, who'd been struggling all Sunday afternoon himself, came up big at the right time. With the game tied, Garnett took a pass from Paul Pierce and hit a 19-footer at the buzzer. Garnett was 3-for-14 from the floor before making the last shot.