King’s Fork High School sophomore small forward/shooting guard Amesha Miller was already a key contributor in her freshman year on the hardwood, and now she is really starting to flourish.

She became the Duke Automotive-Suffolk News-Herald Player of the Week after a string of performances that contributed to a 4-0 run for the Lady Bulldogs from Dec. 6 to Dec. 12.

In a 69-53 road win against Oscar Smith High School on Dec. 11, she registered 24 points and 12 rebounds. In a 64-37 home win over I.C. Norcom High School on Dec. 6, she had 20 points, 15 boards and five steals.

Miller contributed 15 points to a 66-43 victory over visiting Indian River High School on Dec. 12 and 10 points to a 56-28 defeat of visiting Great Bridge High School on Dec. 9.

“It felt good, but I know I couldn’t have gotten anything if it weren’t for the team,” she said of her performances. “All my shots came from really good passes, and I just have to finish.”

Lady Bulldogs coach Maurice Fofana was not surprised by Miller’s impressive statistics.

“Amesha can do that every night,” he said. “It’s just all about her mindset.”

He noted she started the season in a bit of a shooting slump, but he was happy to see her come out of it.

The foundation for Miller’s strong performance began in her third-grade year, when she first started playing the sport.

“Pretty much my dad just introduced me to it,” she said. “I liked blocking people’s shots.”

There was an obvious reason this came naturally to her.

“I was always the tallest person up until I got to high school,” she said, currently standing at 5 feet, 11 inches. “Now I see people who are taller than me.”

Early on, Amesha’s father, Michael Miller, started coaching her on how to play the game.

“Amesha really has a love for it,” he said.

He noted she first played at YMCA when she was in third grade, then she went on to play for a few different Amateur Athletic Union teams. She spent a year with the Suffolk Blazers, four years with Team Evolve and has now spent two years with Team Adidas.

In seventh grade, she played for King’s Fork Middle School, and in eighth grade she played for King’s Fork’s junior varsity team.

Commenting on her strong early performances this season, Miller’s father said, “I’m very proud of her. I just want her to stay humble and keep trying to improve.”

Coach Fofana praised her work ethic and determination and has already begun to help develop her for the college level.

“This year, he’s bringing me more into the guard position,” Miller said. “I have to work on my ball handling and my outside shooting, because I wasn’t really doing that last year.”

And the ones motivating her to give her all each game on the court are her parents, Michael and Adrienne Miller, who Amesha said also played basketball.

“I just want to make sure I’m good, that when I get off the court that they’re happy. When I see them smile, I know I did my part.”