Raider Aid: Burbey stands tall, directs Cibola to playoff game

The Cibola girls basketball team has placed itself near or at the top of its respective regions since Kelsey Burbey joined the team as a freshman.

Getting above the clouds in the 5A Conferences took a little more time and effort.

So it's fitting that Burbey, one of the team's tallest players, was the guiding force that helped the Raiders make their steady climb up the 5A-II mountain in her senior year.

Burbey's 16 points and eight rebounds per game average made her the focal point of a Cibola team that went 12-0 in region play and snare a No. 5 power ranking, earning her 2009's The Sun/Yuma Rotary Club All-Region Girls Basketball Player of the Year.

"I think I had a closer group of girls to play with this year, and that helps a lot," she said. "My father and my mom always reminded me that this is your year, you need to step up and be a leader, and so I wanted to work closely with the other girls."

The unbeaten region regular season was nothing new for Burbey or Cibola, though it didn't come without an overtime, grind-it-out game to sneak by Kofa near the end of the season. Moving into position to host a state playoff game, however, caught her attention after the Raiders narrowly beat 5A-I Glendale-Mountain Ridge on the road in double overtime.

"I watched (the rankings) a lot. I remember when I started watching we were at 18 and then 11, then 13," said Burbey, whose team also drew at No. 4 ranking in the Arizona Republic. "When we finally got to eight I thought, 'OK, we can host a state game,' but when the season was over and we were told we were at five I thought that was amazing and a great accomplishment for the team."

Cibola's playoff situation was already in place before the Gila Valley Region playoffs, but that didn't diminish the team's desire for a tournament title. Burbey had a game-high15 points to help put a convincing 50-32 win on the Kings.

"We played so well together as a team," she said. "To actually have won the Kofa Classic (in December) and region tournament felt great."

Burbey's team lost in the first round of the state tournament to Tempe-Marcos de Niza and 6-foot-6 center Joy Burke at Raider Gym. The Arizona State University-bound post player was one of the few girls who won the battle in the paint this year against Burbey, standing 5-10 and often matched up against opponents three to five inches taller than her.

"We have a basket at my house and I play with my dad, and I tell him don't go easy on me because I'm a girl," she said. "We'll play in a gym with a bunch of guys that are Cibola graduates and guys my dad works with and I'm the only girl, and I tell them don't take it easy on me because no one does in our games, and I'm really glad they pushed me and made me tough."

Basketball will only get tougher for Burbey as she moves into the college arena next year. She has her eye on a few schools in the Phoenix and San Diego areas but hopes to stay in town and play at Arizona Western, where she is already taking classes.

"It gets you way off guard. You're so speechless. All you can say is thank you," she said of being recruited. "Ever since I was a freshman I've been working to get noticed and work as hard as possible, and I feel like its finally paid off. To play in college has always been a dream of mine."