Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Trash cans have hated seeing Omaha’s men’s basketball team coming this season thanks to the postgame ritual an assistant coach has been using to motivate his squad. Now, fans will be able to take advantage of the viral celebration with a promo that gives them a chance to get gallons of popcorn at a game for just $5.
The Omaha Mavericks were sitting a 4-9 and coming off of back-to-back losses heading into their showdown with Cal Poly on December 21st, and the vibes in the locker room weren’t exactly immaculate. Associate head coach Kyan Brown was looking for a way to motivate his guys, and he subsequently “kicked the heck out of” a trash can before they took to the court in an attempt to fire them up.
Omaha walked away with an 86-82 victory at home, and the trash can was subjected to some more abuse after the game to usher in a new tradition that’s seen Brown get increasingly creative as he figures out new ways to rough up the variety of wastebaskets he’s wailed on in recent weeks.
HIT THE CAN! HIT THE CAN!#GoMavs pic.twitter.com/CzjVOTZn9u
— Omaha Men’s Basketball (@OmahaMBB) January 16, 2025
The Mavericks are currently in the midst of a nine-game winning streak that began with their victory over Cal Poly and have improved to 13-9 and sit atop the Summit League standings with a perfect 7-0 record in conference play.
They’ll have a chance to extend the streak on the road against South Dakota on Wednesday night before hosting Denver for a showdown on Saturday, and fans who attend that second game will be able to take advantage of a promotion where they’ll be able to fill up their very own trash can with popcorn for only $5.
Spectators who head to Baxter Arena for Bring Your Own Garbage Can Night will be allowed to enter the venue with a plastic one (sans lid) boasting a capacity no longer larger than five gallons before heading to one of the concession stands to help themselves to a heaping serving of popcorn (it should go without saying they need to be clean, but the school notes it has “the right to refuse any container deemed unsanitary or a potential health risk”).
Well played.