McLeod taking the point

With four point guards on his roster, Jazz coach Jerry Sloan has been hoping one of the four would emerge from the pack.

The early leader in that race, based on Sloan's comments Tuesday, seems to be starter Keith McLeod.

Howard Eisley played 33 minutes Monday night, but most came from the shooting guard spot. McLeod logged 29 but was there for the finish of one of the biggest Jazz wins in some time.

"He's gone out there and acted like he wants the job," Sloan, asked if McLeod will be his primary point for the foreseeable future, said the morning after Utah snapped its nine-game losing streak with a 97-96 win over San Antonio. "There's not been any doubt about that."

With Carlos Arroyo and Raul Lopez both injured and veteran Eisley having just rejoined the Jazz on the regular season's first day, McLeod opened as Utah's starter.

He was shuffled out of the regular rotation when Arroyo and Lopez returned, but since has reclaimed the starting job — and, at least for now, won the right to finish.

"We made a mistake, probably, in the early part of the year (not continuing to play McLeod), because I had the other guys that got hurt, and tried to give them a chance to get back," Sloan said. "And we've kind of stumbled around, maybe, because . . . we have four point guards."

Over time, Sloan has appreciated what he's seen from McLeod — especially Monday.

"Keith did a terrific job handling the ball and getting us into our offense, and doing the right things, and not getting us in scramble situations . . . The important thing is we got into our offense," the Jazz coach said after McLeod scored a career-high 18 points. "That's all we're looking for. We're not looking for anything other than that. Get into our offense, run the play, and run it like you're trying to get something out of it rather than just wallowing through it."

Sloan especially liked that two nights after missing an outside jumper that could have won a game in Milwaukee, McLeod heeded advice and drove to the basket in Monday's waning seconds.

His layup missed, but Mehmet Okur put in the rebound as time expired.

Sloan also complimented both McLeod and Eisley for their hard screens against Spurs.