King-hit stops the charging Tigers Drive to the basket: Nate Tomlinson scores two of his 14 points for the Tigers in their four-point loss to the Sydney Kings. Melbourne Tigers were desperate and brave but ultimately a star short in their NBL season-opening 73-69 loss to Sydney Kings in Sydney on Sunday. The undermanned Tigers worked themselves into a powerful position early in the fourth quarter to lead by 10 points, thanks to Mark Worthington (17 points, nine rebounds) and import centre Scott Morrison (13 points, 10 rebounds). But just as the Tigers threatened to run away with the match, Kings star signing AJ Ogilvy, who struggled to impose himself in the first half, scored key baskets to bring his side within striking distance. Taking Ogilvy's lead, Sydney veteran James Harvey scored a run of jump shots, including a three-pointer that regained the lead for the Kings with two minutes 33 seconds left. Lucas Walker's spin move tied scores soon after but that was as close as the Tigers got despite the Kings' offensive frailties as Harvey passed up an open shot that led to a shot-clock violation with 36 seconds remaining. Worthington said the Tigers would not accept close losses this season. "We had the game in the palm of our hands; we shouldn't drop games like that," he said. Our defence wasn't the same in the fourth as it was in the third. At the end we gave away a few cheap baskets and let Harvey kill us. If we get stops on defence, we will get our points. Ogilvy (14 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks) and Harvey (19 points in 19 minutes) made clear how much the Tigers missed injured Chris Goulding and captain Tommy Greer. Nate Tomlinson played all 40 minutes to end with 14 points, four rebounds and five assists, while rookie Greg Page made his NBL debut. The Tigers host Perth in their first home game on Sunday. ■ Melbourne Boomers will welcome back WNBA championship winner Rachel Jarry when they face Townsville Fire on Friday night. The undefeated Boomers won their third-straight game with a 67-63 upset win over the Fire in Townsville on Sunday, after a win over Logan Thunder on Saturday and the round one win over Sydney University. Tess Madgen was outstanding in both Queensland clashes, scoring 34 points against the Thunder and 24 against the Fire. Coach Guy Molloy praised his players for their defence against Fire's dominant centre Suzy Batkovic (15 points on 3-15 shooting). "We just needed to be pesky little mosquitoes and put pressure on her natural time and space," he said. We had no preparation time, we couldn't get the last flight from Brisbane to Townsville yesterday so we had to fly in today. Molloy said the Boomers would keep a lid on expectations. A new coach and new playing group takes time to come together. In all sincerity, I was forecasting a slower start but this gives us a little buffer because we still have more growth to come," he said. Dandenong Rangers and Bendigo Spirit won on the weekend. Total votes: 131.