Washington’s Dinsmore is total package

It’s state week and a day before Milwaukee Washington heads to Madison to complete its preparation for the state tournament, Freddie Riley is addressing the players about his expectations for the trip.

Mid-talk, the Purgolders boys basketball coach turns his attention to his senior point guard and tells him and anyone else within earshot that he is the standard.

“Jordan Dinsmore exemplifies that kind of player we want at Washington,” Riley said.

That’s strong praise for a guy averaging 11.9 points per game, but anyone who knows Dinsmore understands his impact is bigger than stats. When it comes to how to represent on the court, in the classroom and around the

school, few do it better than the 6-foot-3 guard.

A 3.5-GPA student who says he ranks “second or third” in his class, Dinsmore has also molded himself into a Division I prospect and the steady floor general of a team that will make its second straight state tournament appearance at 1:35 p.m. Friday against La Crosse Central in the Division 2 semifinals at the Kohl Center.

“He’s not going to go dunk it. He’s not going to go jump over people and stuff like that,” Riley said. “What he does is he keeps you in the game and gives your team a chance to win. He says all the right things to his teammates. He says all the right things at the right time. That’s a leader.”

This week Dinsmore has a chance to be part of something special. Washington (23-3) hasn’t won a state title since 1993 and a City Conference team hasn’t brought home the crown since King won its second straight championship in 2004.

The Purgolders, ranked No. 1 in the Journal Sentinel area rankings for most of the season, have the pieces to break those droughts.

Dinsmore has been more of a tablesetter than in past years. He is averaging 9.5 points per game with 6.4 assists. His assists-to-turnover ratio has jumped from to 2.3-to-1 last season to about 3-to-1.

Montana State has offered him a scholarship. UW-Milwaukee, Kent State and Sacramento State have shown interest. Holy Cross, where former Washington and University of Wisconsin standout Freddie Owens is an assistant coach, is also interested.

“It’s a blessing,” Dinsmore said. “All the hard work I’ve put in all my life and to finally get recruited and get my first Division I offer … it’s a blessing to start to be recognized.”

Dinsmore has been recognized off the court, too. Earlier this year he was selected to receive a Black Excellence Award from WISN-TV (Channel 12). He was the winner of the City Conference’s Phil Geil Award, an honor that goes to the league’s top senior student.

“My parents taught me to plan ahead,” he said. “I know what time I’ve got to go to school and what time I’ve got practice and workouts, so the time I’m not practicing or working out, I’m at home doing homework, studying, trying to be the best student I can be.

“There are always going to be people that are trying to be better than you, so always staying focused is the main thing.”

Dinsmore’s and his teammates’ attention in the coming days will be on the state tournament.

Last year in the state semifinals he had 13 points with four assists in a double-overtime loss to Cedarburg. This year he has a chance to help bring a title back to the city and follow in the footsteps of his father, Johnnie, a standout on Whitefish Bay’s 1996 state championship team.

From there, the sky’s the limit. “The kid is there,” Riley said. “I can’t see failure in his path. I can’t see it.”