South East Melbourne Phoenix will host the NBL’s new play-in elimination game on Thursday but hopes of a Throwdown game against Melbourne United were dashed by just two points in a heart-stopping final day of the regular season.

The Phoenix, who were left without a game in the final round, moved up to fifth spot after Perth Wildcats lost their Friday night game to Cairns Taipans.

But the Wildcats made up for that result with a clutch win on Sunday, beating top team Sydney Kings 96-84 to seal sixth place and return to the finals after missing out last year. The Phoenix and Wildcats will play an elimination game at John Cain Arena on Thursday at 6.30pm AEDT.

Melbourne United won 116-107 over Adelaide 36ers earlier on Sunday in front of a sell-out crowd of 10,175 at John Cain Arena. That result meant Perth had to win by 11 points or more to pass them on percentage.

The Wildcats’ winning margin was 12 points with Brody Manek nailing two late free throws to push the lead into the safe zone with just seconds to go. Sydney guard DJ Vasiljevic had a three-point shot with four seconds to play which would have knocked out the Wildcats, but it missed.

NBA draftee Luke Travers stood up for the Wildcats with 22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, while Corey Webster had 26 points and Manek 21 points.

“We won by 12 [points] but it felt like a one-point win,” Wildcats star Bryce Cotton told ESPN after the game.

United had staged a memorable second half of the season to recover from a 5-10 start to finish with a 15-13 record.