Sunday came and went with little fanfare, but it marked the culmination of an important transition at Penn State. A year ago Sunday, then-Lady Lions coach Rene Portland resigned, taking with her three years-worth of baggage stemming from allegations she discriminated against a former player on the basis of race, gender and sexual orientation.

For Penn State, it marked the opportunity for a fresh start. And after an extensive coaching search that lasted more than 30 days, the Lady Lions hired Coquese Washington, a former Notre Dame assistant with a loaded resume but no head coaching experience.

And while that lack of experience could partly be to blame for the Lady Lions 13-16 season, which ended with a program-worst 12-game losing streak, the depth of Washington's hire not only rests on her ability to turn the program around, but in her ability to put the university's best face forward.

Washington is a player's coach. She has said from her first press conference that she wants to give her team a "world-class" experience, and she has. Often times, Washington eats lunch at the HUB-Robeson Center with her team. And during press conferences, she openly jokes with her players, who genuinely seem to enjoy learning from her.

But more importantly, there have been no protests to her hiring -- at least nothing more than fans on messages boards bemoaning the losing streak. But that pales in comparison to what was happening last season under Portland. Rainbow flags hung in protest from the BJC seats and signs -- one reading "Personal foul, Rene Portland!" peppered the crowd.

In less than a year, the simple hiring of Washington has helped alleviate the pressure Penn State faced as the university let Portland continue to coach, even after Penn State found her in violation of the university's anti-discrimination policy. With Washington, there are no more protests. There is no extra pressure to be a university more welcoming to diversity.

"Hiring Washington has definitely begun a new era for Penn State basketball," said Helen Carroll, sports project director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "Part of that era definitely has to do with embracing respect for difference, and I think that has to do with race and embracing everyone."

In the end, it's better for the university for fans to be protesting lackluster basketball than discrimination lawsuits. And after all, Washington's hire has already fixed the biggest problem of the program -- a negative public perception. Fixing the Lady Lions' underachieving play seems like a much easier task.