AUBURN HILLS, MICH. ? Twelve hours after one of the franchise’s biggest victories, the Detroit Pistons were back on the practice court Saturday, defying the skeptics again.

With barely any time to celebrate — or even sleep — following Friday night’s series-clinching overtime victory at Philadelphia, the Pistons had no trouble getting motivated for the New Jersey Nets. Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals is today.

“There were some things that were said that kind of made it personal,” guard Chucky Atkins said. “There were some comments made about us from Richard Jefferson, something about us being overrated. Nobody has given us a chance all year.”

Jefferson took that swipe at the Pistons during the regular season, but the recycled bulletin-board material still serves the purpose for a group of players not used to getting this far. Detroit is in the conference finals for the first time since 1991, a year after its last NBA title.

The Pistons got home at 2 a.m. Saturday and were on the floor at 2 p.m. Guard Richard Hamilton, so excited over the team’s success in his first postseason experience, said he liked the quick turnaround because it keeps his nerves from taking over.

“You don’t get a chance to dwell on it,” Hamilton said. “To me, it still hasn’t set in. Everybody calls me and says ‘Man, can you believe you’re in the finals?’ And I’m like, ‘Hey, it’s more games you can play.”‘

The Nets, meanwhile, have practically twiddled their thumbs all week waiting for this series to start. They finished a four-game sweep of Boston Monday, seemingly creating a natural advantage for a team that loves to run.

detroit's ben wallace (3) grabs a rebound in front of teammate Richard Hamilton (32) and Philadelphia's Kenny Thomas during a game Friday. The Pistons begin their series against the New Jersey Nets today in Auburn Hills, Mich.

“They haven’t had much rest,” Nets forward Kenyon Martin said. “So we want to go up there and play our game. We want to go out there and impose our will on them. They want to play in the halfcourt. We want to run. We’ll see who gets the best of it.”

The Pistons countered by saying that their team is deep, with Ben Wallace the only player to consistently log heavy minutes. Point guard Chauncey Billups, who has to chase Jason Kidd all over the court, should also be fresh after sitting out three games in the Philadelphia series because of a sprained ankle.

“It’s a great matchup — I feel like he is the best point guard in the league,” Billups said. “It’s a great challenge for me because he’s Mr. Everything for them.”

Even with the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers eliminated from the West, the Nets and Pistons have much work to do before they can prove that this series is anything but the JV championship. Detroit and New Jersey went a combined 2-10 against San Antonio, Dallas and Sacramento this season, and the Eastern Conference champion is 5-16 in the NBA Finals since Michael Jordan left Chicago in 1998.

“OK, we’ll be the JV series,” Nets guard Lucious Harris said. “But it’s going to come down to two teams in the finals, and I don’t mind being the underdog.”