NBC had another solid outing for NHL coverage last weekend. In other news, CBS had declines for a college basketball doubleheader last week, while TNT had mixed results for a Thursday night NBA doubleheader.
- Double-Digit Rise For Flyers/Sabres: Sunday’s Flyers/Sabres NHL regular season game drew a 1.1 final rating and 1.8 million viewers on NBC, up 22% in ratings and 34% in viewership from Capitals/Penguins last year (0.9, 1.3M), and up 38% and 49%, respectively, from Flyers/Blackhawks in 2011 (0.8, 1.2M). (Weekend numbers from Sports Business Daily)
- Big Declines For College Hoops on CBS: Last Saturday’s Oregon/UCLA college basketball game drew a 0.8 final rating on CBS, down 39% from regional coverage on the network last year (1.3). The game was doubled head-to-head by Syracuse/Louisville on ESPN (1.6). Earlier in the day, regional action on CBS earned a 0.9 — down 36% from Michigan/Arkansas last year (1.4). All five college basketball games on ESPN last Saturday outdrew the two games on CBS. (Weekend numbers from Sports Business Daily)
- Knicks/Celtics Up Big on TNT: The Knicks/Celtics NBA regular season game drew 2.5 million viewers on TNT Thursday night, up 51% from Celtics/Magic last year (1.6M), and up 30% from Mavericks/Bulls in 2011 (1.9M). Later in the night, Clippers/Suns earned 1.4 million — down 17% from Grizzlies/Clippers last year (1.7M), and down 14% from Clippers/Trail Blazers in 2011 (1.6M). (Thu. numbers from The Futon Critic)
