Melbourne United will face Perth in the NBL grand final after defeating the Sydney 90-76 in game two to close out their semi-final series.
Melbourne guards Casper Ware (30 points) and Chris Goulding (23) guided the defending champions to a 2-0 series sweep of the Kings to earn the chance to claim back-to-back championships.
In front of 14,769 fans on Sunday afternoon at Qudos Bank Arena - the largest NBL crowd in more than 20 years - the Kings led after one quarter but could not find their attacking rhythm as United gradually pulled away.
Ware set the tone for United with 17 first-quarter points, before Goulding took centre stage, producing one of his trademark scoring bursts through the middle stages of the match to leave Sydney reeling.
"We knew with Perth winning yesterday, it was important to come out and try to wrap this thing up," Goulding told Fox Sports.
"We didn't want to have to play again and then, with the travel to Perth, so we wanted to wrap it up, get our bodies right and get ready to rock in game one."
The grand final series against the Wildcats opens on Friday night in Perth with Melbourne hosting game two next Sunday.
Kevin Lisch and Kyle Adnam each scored 13 points for the Kings, with Andrew Bogut collecting a double-double (10 points, 12 rebounds) but leading scorer Jerome Randle, struggling with a leg injury, could only manage two points on one-of-15 shooting.
"Yeah, it is tough any time the season ends - it feels like it just ends so quickly but that's sports," Lisch said.
The loss brings Andrew Gaze's three-year stint as Sydney coach to an end after steering the club to their first playoff series since the 2012-13 season.
Ware played a lone hand for the visitors in the opening quarter by making five of his seven shots, four of those from three-point range, but Sydney's collective effort earned them a 24-22 edge.
With a 6-0 start to the second quarter, Melbourne grabbed the lead as Sydney's attack faltered, Goulding and Mitch McCarron beginning to make scoreboard impact.
It took an eight-point burst from reserve centre Ray Turner to get the Kings moving and late contributions from Lisch and Bogut reduced Melbourne's halftime lead to 42-40.
But the home side had no answer for Goulding in the third quarter, United's captain making a pair of triples on his way to 14 points while another long bomb from Ware pushed the lead out to 12 points.
Facing a 67-58 deficit heading into the fourth quarter, the Kings made the worst possible start as DJ Kennedy followed up a dunk with a steal leading to a three-point play, putting the result beyond Sydney's reach.
