Viewership mostly increased for a pair of NBA doubleheaders on TNT. In other news, Sunday Night Hockey was again the top NHL draw on NBCSN and the Women’s Frozen Four final topped last year’s men’s championship.
NBA Mostly Up on TNT Last Week
- Tuesday’s Wizards/Warriors NBA regular season game drew a 1.3 final rating and 1.8 million viewers on TNT, up a tick in ratings and 14% in viewership from Warriors/Clippers last year (1.2, 1.6M) and up 57% in the latter from Blazers/Lakers in 2014 (1.2M). Rockets/Cavaliers drew 1.4 million earlier in the night, up 2% from Spurs/Heat last year (1.3M) and up 22% from Rockets/Nets in ’14 (1.1M). On Thursday, Bulls/Rockets drew 1.1 million and Clippers/Thunder 1.8 million — down 46% and up 39%, respectively, from last year’s doubleheader of Heat/Cavaliers (2.0M) and Suns/Warriors (1.3M).
Sunday Night Tops NHL Charts Again on NBCSN
- Rangers/Penguins scored 704,000 viewers on NBC’s Sunday Night Hockey last weekend, up 191% from Sharks/Penguins last year (242K), up 94% from Wild/Red Wings in 2014 (363K), and the network’s top game of the week. Ranking second, Flyers/Capitals scored 697,000 on Wednesday — up 14% from Flyers/Penguins last year (611K) and up 27% from Flyers/Rangers in ’14 (547K). In other action, Red Wings/Sabres had 280,000 on Monday (+3%), Sharks/Kings had 260,000 later that night, and Blues/Avalanche drew 263,000 on Tuesday.
Women’s Frozen Four Tops Last Year’s Men’s Edition
- Tape-delayed coverage of the Minnesota/Boston College Women’s Frozen Four final earned a 0.4 final rating and 651,000 viewers on CBS last Sunday. The game was not televised last year. Last year’s men’s Frozen Four final, which aired live on ESPN, had a 0.3 and 635,000.
(Numbers via Programming Insider, ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2], [3], [4], [5]), Sports Business Daily)
