A pair of wildly different Game 3s drew wildly different numbers over the weekend.
As mentioned earlier, the Suns’ competitive Game 3 win over the Lakers drew a 6.1 overnight rating on TNT Sunday night, down 8% from Cavaliers/Magic Game 3 last year (6.6), but up 39% from Lakers/Spurs Game 3 in ’08 (4.4).
Lakers/Suns drew the highest overnight of any sporting event over the weekend on broadcast or cable.
The 6.1 overnight is the highest of the Conference Finals, and the second-highest of the entire NBA postseason — behind only Cavaliers/Celtics Game 6 on ESPN May 13 (7.1).
The previous night, the Celtics’ crushing defeat of the Magic drew a 4.4 overnight rating on ESPN, down 33% from Lakers/Nuggets Game 3 on ABC last year (6.6), and down 4% from Celtics/Pistons Game 3 on ABC in ’08 (4.6).
The 4.4 overnight is easily the lowest of the Conference Finals. Every other game has drawn at least a 5.3.
Depsite the decline, Magic/Celtics topped regional MLB action on FOX Saturday night (3.6). Overnight ratings for the NASCAR All-Star Race were not immediately available.
