NATCHEZ — Fundamentals is the name of the game, and Alphaka Moore is giving her players plenty of it.

The new Natchez High School girls basketball coach was teaching her players new passing drills Tuesday morning in the school’s gymnasium, and Moore said passing and finishing layups are a key focal point this offseason.

“I think they struggled a bit last year with those things,” Moore said. “We also have our guards do agility and motor drills for quickness. We kind of started from scratch, beginning with talking and communication and then defense. This week, we’re working on offense.”

Moore said workouts started in mid-June, right after she finished the process of moving to Natchez. So far, Moore said she’s been pleased with the turnout.

“All the girls, even some from the junior high, have been packing the gym every day,” Moore said. “Basically, we’re starting with the fundamental stuff — the little things — and trying to fix that. Sometimes, it’s those little things that are the most important.”

During the season is when Moore said she expects to begin installing offensive and defensive plays, after he players have mastered the different sets Moore wants to use on both sides of the ball.

“Right now, we’re talking about offensive and defensive sets,” Moore said. “I think these girls are used to doing just one main thing, and so I’m trying to teach them different things. A lot of the stuff we’re doing today, they just learned yesterday.”

The Lady Bulldogs aren’t the only set of Bulldogs getting their summer workouts in. The NHS boys are also experiencing a good turnout rate, assistant coach David Haywood said.

“We’ve been able to get in a lot of work with fundamentals and individual skills,” Haywood said. “Our summer workout numbers have been much higher than in the past. This is probably the biggest output in the summer since I’ve been here.”

Haywood said he has high hopes about this year’s crop of players, especially since they’ve put in so much work this summer.

“I think this group of kids is more dedicated to basketball,” Haywood said. “These aren’t dual-sport participants. A lot of them have a long ways to go, but they have made a start by coming in and putting in the work every day.”

Offense has been the focus of late for the boys, Haywood said.

“A lot of these guys are trying to join the junior varsity and varsity teams, so we’re trying to break down our drills and go over man-to-man and zone, so they have a basic grasp of principles,” Haywood said.