The USA men’s basketball exhibitions could not quite reach regular season viewership levels on NBA TV. In other news, the semis and finals of The Basketball Tournament posted gains on ESPN, and Formula 1’s return to Germany scored an increase on NBCSN.
USA Hoops Slightly Below Regular Season Levels on NBA TV
- NBA TV averaged 321,000 viewers for five United States men’s basketball exhibition games, down 7% compared to the network’s regular season NBA coverage (345K). The high water mark was 414,000 for USA/China on July 24. The numbers were no match for 2012, when viewership ranged between 900,000 and 2.7 million for four live games on ESPN and ESPN2. Keep in mind those networks were in more than 98 million homes in 2012, while NBA TV is currently in only 53 million. (Turner Sports)
The Basketball Tournament Posts Gains on ESPN
- The championship game of The Basketball Tournament earned 344,000 viewers on ESPN Tuesday night, up 8% from last year, when coverage aired on a Sunday afternoon (318K). Both of Saturday’s semifinals pulled better numbers, with 365,000 for the early window (+51%) and 373,000 for the late game (+52%). To put the numbers in perspective, ESPN and ESPN2 averaged 267,000 for the NBA’s Las Vegas Summer League earlier in the summer, including 366,000 for the final. (ShowBuzz Daily [1], [2])
F1 Germany GP Up From Previous Edition
- The Formula 1 German Grand Prix drew a 0.3 final rating and 506,000 viewers on NBCSN Sunday morning, up a tick in ratings and 28% in viewership from 2014, the last time the race was held (0.2, 394K). It earned the third-largest audience of the season on cable, behind Azerbaijan in June (569K) and Bahrain in April (578K). (ShowBuzz Daily)
