After a decline in the overnights, final ratings jumped double-digits for last week’s Kentucky-North Carolina game. Also: the NBA on TNT scored its largest audience since opening week, and the NHL posted a slight dip Thursday night.
Kentucky-UNC Up Double-Digits in Final Results
Kentucky-North Carolina scored a 1.6 rating and 2.71 million viewers in the back half of last Saturday’s CBS Sports Classic, up 14% in ratings and 16% in viewership from last year (UCLA-Kentucky: 1.4, 2.33M), but down 27% and 25% respectively from the same matchup in 2016 (2.2, 3.63M).
The Wildcats’ win delivered the second-largest college basketball audience of the season. Duke-Kentucky had 2.85 million on ESPN in last month’s Champions Classic.
The final nationals were a reversal from the overnights, which declined double-digits.
Earlier in the day, Ohio State-UCLA had a 1.0 (-9%) and 1.51 million (-14%).
NBA on TNT Posts Largest Audience Since Opening Week
Celtics-Rockets scored 1.95 million viewers on the NBA on TNT Thursday night, up 12% from the same matchup last year (1.74M) and up 21% from Celtics-Cavaliers in 2016 (1.61M). Ratings were not immediately available.
The Rockets’ win was the most-watched game on TNT since the opening week of the season. Of the network’s 18 windows that can be compared to last year, it was just the fifth to post an increase.
The Sixers-Jazz nightcap had 1.29 million, down 2% from last year (Sixers-Blazers: 1.31M) but up 2% from 2016 (Mavericks-Lakers: 1.27M).
Slight Dip For Recent NHL
Thursday’s Flyers-Lightning NHL regular season game drew 248,000 viewers on NBCSN, down 4% from last year (Bruins-Capitals: 259K), but up 37% from 2016 (Devils-Capitals: 181K).
In other action, last Friday’s Sabres-Capitals game had 278,000; there was no comparable window last year.
