Sydney have spoiled Cairns' final home game of the NBL season, beating the Taipans 93-86.
Local fans might not have cared the clash was between two teams with no finals hopes, but the sold-out Cairns Convention Centre didn't get the farewell they would have wanted.
Out to avoid the wooden spoon, Sydney point guard Jerome Randle was un-guardable as he took on the Taipans off the dribble at every chance.
The pint-sized point had 17 points from seven out of 11 shooting at halftime, taking Sydney out to a nine-point buffer.
The visitors' lead blew out to 18 points in the third quarter after Jason Cadee (14 points) and Kevin Lisch (16 points) joined Randle's party.
Sydney's superstar sent shivers through the Kings' camp when he appeared to slip on his ankle in the fourth quarter, but was able to finish the match with 24 points.
Kings coach Andrew Gaze praised all three of his guards as they escaped from a notoriously hard court to win at with a victory.
"There are no gimmes, Cairns are a remarkable team they are coached very well, we had to earn it and we made some shots," Gaze said.
For Cairns, veteran forward Alex Loughton increased his odds to take out the club's MVP award with 19 points, while point guard Jarrad Weeks went home with 18.
Weeks was nothing but despondent after another disjointed effort from the men in orange.
"The way we played, we go through patches were we just play terribly and it's not enough in this league," he said.
The Taipans will play Perth on Friday, while Sydney are set to host Brisbane on Sunday week.
