The NBA Finals continues to deliver the event’s best numbers in well over a decade.
Game 3 of the Warriors/Cavaliers NBA Finals earned a 13.7 overnight rating on ABC Tuesday night, up a third from Spurs/Heat last year (10.3), up 37% from Heat/Spurs in 2013 (10.0), and the highest for a Game 3 since Lakers/Sixers on NBC in 2001 (16.1). The previous high over that span was a 12.6 for Lakers/Pistons in 2004.
The 13.7 overnight is the second-highest for Game 3 of the NBA Finals since Jazz/Bulls in 1998 (16.8). All three games of the Cavaliers/Warriors series have hit at least a 13-year high in the metered markets, and two of the three have been the second-highest rated since 1998 (Game 1 ranked third).
The 13.7 is also the eighth-highest for an NBA Finals game since ABC resumed airing the event in 2003. All three games of the series rank among the top ten.
The Cavaliers’ win earned a whopping 49.0 rating in Cleveland, up 49% from Spurs/Cavaliers Game 3 in 2007 (32.9), and easily the highest ever for an NBA game on ESPN/ABC in the market. The previous high was a 42.1 for Game 2, and the high before that was a 41.4 for Game 1.
The game drew a 31.6 in the Bay Area, down a tick from Game 2 (31.7). Columbus, OH (25.2), Memphis (19.5) and Atlanta (17.0) each rounded out the top five. Memphis, it should be noted, has topped a 19.0 rating for each game of the series.
(Tue. numbers from ESPN Media Zone)
