LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A lot was different with the Marquette men's basketball team during its 62-58 loss to Louisville Sunday.

The obvious change was the absence of senior guard Dominic James, who did not travel with the team after undergoing surgery on Friday. But the change ran much deeper than that.

Through its first 28 games, Marquette (23-6, 12-4 Big East) started the same five players – the only team in the Big East to do so. But when James went down, suddenly the entire complexion of the team was altered.

"He was our leader," junior guard David Cubillan said. "We have a new team, so we just adjust…We have to make up for what he does for us."

Against Connecticut, that adjustment was handing 33 minutes to junior guard Maurice Acker. Before the Golden Eagles' loss to the Huskies, Acker was averaging just 11.7 minutes per game. Acker filled in admirably – four assists, three rebounds and six points on two 3-pointers — but with his limited minutes up until then, it was unclear what coach Buzz Williams was going to do against Louisville (23-5, 14-2 Big East).

"The problem is Maurice can play the point, but (Cubillan) can't play the point," Williams said. Acker "is not in a position, from an efficiency standpoint, to play 40 minutes, so now when (Acker) comes out, (Jerel McNeal) has to play the point.

"So I would say that we're probably trending in the direction that Wes (Matthews) and (McNeal) will have to play every possession of every game."

On Sunday, Acker played 33 minutes again, while McNeal and Matthews each played the full 40. The rest of the minutes shook out like this: Dwight Burke, 19; Lazar Hayward, 30; Cubillan, 12; Jimmy Butler, 26; and Joseph Fulce, 0+.

In the team's last four games, Butler averaged 23.8 minutes per game, so the 26 minutes he registered against Louisville were right in line with his norm. But Cubillan is averaging just 9.1 mpg and Fulce has only seen action in nine games. Both were playing the majority of their limited minutes during scrap time.

Acker, Cubillan and Fulce all figure to play an increased role on the team, but it is still unclear exactly how Williams will utilize them. The coach fiddled with a number of different lineups in an effort to overcome a stout Louisville defense.

Williams "is just wanting to see what's working and what's best for us as a team," Hayward said. "I think that's what he's doing."

In the team's first full game without James, however, the Golden Eagles clearly had trouble initiating their offense and finding any sort of rhythm. Marquette committed 11 turnovers to just seven assists. And with McNeal not being accustomed to the facilitator role, he struggled against the Cardinals (3-of-19 shooting).

"We miss a little bit of (James') playmaking ability throughout the course of the game," McNeal said.

Louisville coach Rick Pitino said Marquette should be fine in the next few games but that the loss of James will hurt the team come tournament time.

"Even with Acker, they aren't losing a whole lot," Pitino said. "And I say that in the short run. In the long run, Dominic James is such a dominant basketball player, they're going to really miss him. But in the short hall of the one to two more Big East games, Acker's going to get the job done for them. Then, obviously, when you go to the tournament not having a Dominic James means a lot."