Uncasville, Conn. ? An attitude adjustment made all the difference for the Detroit Shock, the newly crowned Eastern Conference champs.

Rebounding from a nine-point loss to Connecticut in Game 2 of the conference finals, the Shock were dominant from the opening tip Sunday night and routed the Sun 79-55 to earn their second trip to the WNBA finals.

They’ll take on defending WNBA champion Sacramento in a best-of-five series beginning Wednesday.

“There was no adjustment accept in the players’ attitude and how they approached the game,” Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer said.

Swin Cash and Katie Smith led the Shock with 16 points each and reserve Kara Braxton added 12.

Cash set the tone early with her intensity, winning hustle plays and scoring on putbacks. Braxton, a 6-foot-6 forward, had 10 points in the first half, nearly all in the paint. Her coach challenged her after Game 2 and she responded.

“I went after Kara in the locker room and said ‘We need you to perform,”‘ Laimbeer said.

He told Cash the same thing and got the same results.

“We just came in with a mind-set and everyone was like ‘whatever it takes, win at all cost,”‘ Cash said. “We didn’t care who got the credit. It was a beautiful thing to be a part of.”

The Shock return to the league finals for the first time since winning the championship in 2003.

Much like the 2003 title team, Laimbeer’s squad rolled through these playoffs with a dominating inside game, anchored by the Cheryl Ford, the league’s leading rebounder.

Ford finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots. She was mobbed by her teammates after her block of a jumper by Taj McWilliams-Franklin closed out the third quarter.

“We knew what we had to do … don’t give them any second shots and run,” Ford said.

It was that kind of night for Detroit.

As for Connecticut, the two-time defending conference champs shot just 30 percent, were confounded by the Shock defense and outscored 42-16 in the paint.

“Detroit played like they’re supposed to play. They don’t always do that,” Sun coach Mike Thibault said. “The consensus is they are physically one of the most talented teams. They played like that tonight and we didn’t match them.”

The Sun were denied their third straight trip to the championship round.

“They’re one of those teams that really pushes back at us,” Sun guard Lindsay Whalen said. “We feel that one of our strengths is getting it up the floor and playing at a fast tempo. That’s what they like to do, too.”

Shock 79, Sun 55

DETROIT (79)

Cash 7-14 2-2 16, Ford 3-11 4-6 10, Riley 3-7 0-0 6, Nolan 4-7 1-2 9, Smith 5-12 5-5 16, Pierson 3-6 2-2 8, Braxton 6-10 0-0 12, Powell 0-1 0-0 0, Williams 1-2 0-0 2, Batteast 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 32-71 14-17 79.

CONNECTICUT (55)

McWilliams-Franklin 6-8 0-0 12, Sales 0-5 0-0 0, Dydek 3-7 1-2 7, Whalen 3-16 3-3 10, Douglas 3-10 0-0 9, Jones 3-10 3-4 9, Mahoney 0-3 0-0 0, Phillips 1-4 0-1 3, Willingham 1-3 0-0 3, Summerton 1-2 0-0 2, Carey 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-68 7-10 55.

Detroit 23 23 17 16 – 79

Connecticut 18 19 8 10 – 55

3-Point Goals-Detroit 1-6 (Smith 1-4, Cash 0-2), Connecticut 6-25 (Douglas 3-9, Willingham 1-1, Phillips 1-2, Whalen 1-7, Jones 0-1, Sales 0-2, Mahoney 0-3). Rebounds-Detroit 48 (Cash, Ford 8), Connecticut 44 (Dydek 9). Assists-Detroit 17 (Nolan 5), Connecticut 11 (Sales 3). Total Fouls-Detroit 18, Connecticut 17. Technicals-Detroit coach Bill.Laimbeer, Connecticut coach Thibault. A-6,820. (9,341).