NBA Finals: Game 6 Hits 11-Year High With 15.0 Overnight

Posted by | 06/13/2011 at 11:19 am

The last NBA game before a presumably lengthy work stoppage earned strong numbers for ABC Sunday night.

Sunday’s Game 6 between the Mavericks and Heat earned an 15.0 overnight rating on ABC, up 22% from last year (BOS/LAL G6: 12.3), and up 17% from 2008 (LAL/BOS G6: 12.8).

The 15.0 is the highest overnight for Game 6 of the NBA Finals since 2000 (IND/LAL G6: 17.3), and the highest for a Game 6 that did not involve the Lakers since 1998 (CHI/UTA G6: 22.9).

By comparison, Heat/Mavericks Game 6 in 2006 drew an 11.1 overnight.

Overall, Sunday’s game drew the third-highest overnight for an NBA game on ABC since the network acquired rights to the league in 2002, behind only Lakers/Pistons Game 5 in 2004 (15.5*) and Celtics/Lakers Game 7 in 2010 (18.2).

Compared to other sports, Game 6 drew a higher overnight than the NCAA Men’s Basketball National Championship Game (CON/BUT: 13.3, CBS), and every game of the 2010 World Series. Excluding the NFL, the only sporting event to draw a higher overnight this year was the BCS National Championship Game (AUB/ORE: 16.1, ESPN).

Since the current scheduling format began in 2004, final ratings for Game 6 of the NBA Finals have declined between 9% and 16% from the overnight, putting Sunday’s game on pace to finish in the 12.5-13.6 range.

Should the final rating equal 12.2 or higher, the NBA Finals will average a double-digit rating for the second straight year.

Game 6 drew an 36.2 rating in Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, up 11% from Game 5 (32.7), and up 9% from Game 6 in 2006 (33.3).

In Dallas-Ft. Worth, the game drew a 39.8 — up 24% from Game 5 (31.9), and up 1% from 2006 (39.6). This marks the first and only time this series that any game has topped 2006 in the Dallas market.

The game set local ratings records in both markets.

Overnight Ratings For Game 6 of the NBA Finals
Dating back to 2001

* According to ESPN, Game 5 of the 2004 Lakers/Pistons NBA Finals drew a 15.5 overnight. However, multiple reports at the time had the game drawing a 15.4.

(This year’s numbers from espnmediazone3.com)

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  • Nbahoops2011

    If there was a game 7, would a 20 overnight rating have been a possibility?

    • Paulsen

      Probably not. Perhaps somewhere in the 19.0 range.

  • JakeFrankie

    Congratulations to the Dallas Mavericks who nobody thought could win a NBA Championship.

    Great news for the NBA, This is the kinda of rating I was expecting. Paulsen you doubted the NBA Could get into the Late 11′s put that to shame lol.
    All it needs is a 12.2 final rating, the Series will average at least a 10.0. I do believe it will fall short of last year’s 10.6, But it will finish between 10.0-10.4 range.

    What a season for the NBA, Thank you Paulsen for all of your hard work.

  • JakeFrankie

    Congratulations to the Dallas Mavericks who nobody thought could win a NBA Championship.

    Great news for the NBA, This is the kinda of rating I was expecting. Paulsen you doubted the NBA Could get into the Late 11′s put that to shame lol.
    All it needs is a 12.2 final rating, the Series will average at least a 10.0. I do believe it will fall short of last year’s 10.6, But it will finish between 10.0-10.4 range.

    What a season for the NBA, Thank you Paulsen for all of your hard work.

  • Rich S.

    David Stern must be kicking himself at the Mavs’ resilience and the Heat’s ineptitude. A game 7 would have probably outrated last year’s. Great way for the NBA season to end; now let’s just hope they sort out the labor problems before the start of training camp.

  • Rich S.

    David Stern must be kicking himself at the Mavs’ resilience and the Heat’s ineptitude. A game 7 would have probably outrated last year’s. Great way for the NBA season to end; now let’s just hope they sort out the labor problems before the start of training camp.

  • Bbr345

    3 of the last 4 finals to go 7 saw a gain of at least 50% from game 6 to 7 in terms of final rating. a 50% jump here would have projected out to a 22.5 overnight for a game 7. I’m not saying it would have gone that high. But a 19 almost seems absurdly low.

  • Bbr345

    3 of the last 4 finals to go 7 saw a gain of at least 50% from game 6 to 7 in terms of final rating. a 50% jump here would have projected out to a 22.5 overnight for a game 7. I’m not saying it would have gone that high. But a 19 almost seems absurdly low.

  • Bbr345

    3 of the last 4 finals to go 7 saw a gain of at least 50% from game 6 to 7 in terms of final rating. a 50% jump here would have projected out to a 22.5 overnight for a game 7. I’m not saying it would have gone that high. But a 19 almost seems absurdly low.

  • Bbr345

    3 of the last 4 finals to go 7 saw a gain of at least 50% from game 6 to 7 in terms of final rating. a 50% jump here would have projected out to a 22.5 overnight for a game 7. I’m not saying it would have gone that high. But a 19 almost seems absurdly low.

  • Chad

    The big question after last night’s game, just like the NFL, when will the next NBA game be, from everything you hear, it will be awhile.

  • Gordon

    Damn it, I guess we will never know! Anybody else think the Game 7 jump would have been a little smaller than usual because Game 6 was on a Tuesday? I still think it would have finished somewhere in the 14.5-16.5 range.

  • Gordon

    Damn it, I guess we will never know! Anybody else think the Game 7 jump would have been a little smaller than usual because Game 6 was on a Tuesday? I still think it would have finished somewhere in the 14.5-16.5 range.

  • JakeFrankie

    One more thing I gotta say is Dallas gets a 39.8 local rating That is a huge rating I’m sure someone knows this isn’t Dallas in top 7-8 Market in America. Just had to point that out man what a local rating.Miami’s 36.2 local rating isn’t bad it’s self too lol.

  • JakeFrankie

    One more thing I gotta say is Dallas gets a 39.8 local rating That is a huge rating I’m sure someone knows this isn’t Dallas in top 7-8 Market in America. Just had to point that out man what a local rating.Miami’s 36.2 local rating isn’t bad it’s self too lol.