NCAA Selection Show ratings did not just bounce back from last year’s low, but hit a five-year high in the metered markets. Also: overnights for conference championship games, the Players Championship and NASCAR.
Selection Show hits five-year high in overnights
Sunday’s NCAA Tournament Selection Show delivered a 4.0 overnight rating on CBS, up 150% from last year on TBS (1.6), up 21% from 2017 on CBS (3.3), and the highest overnight for the event in five years (2014: 4.2). The increase snapped a streak of four-straight record lows.
This year marked just the eighth time since 1991 that Selection Show overnights have increased.
The Selection Show was the top sports program of the weekend in the metered markets, finishing ahead of the final round of The Players Championship on NBC (3.3).
Zion, Duke, boost ACC Tournament final
Duke-Florida State scored a 2.8 overnight rating in Saturday’s ACC Tournament final, up 35% from last year, and the highest overnight on record for the event. The 2.8 is also the second-highest for any Championship Week game on ESPN, behind a 3.0 for Duke-North Carolina on Friday night.
The game comfortably topped Warriors-Thunder on ABC’s NBA Saturday Primetime head-to-head (2.1).
In other Championship Week action, Sunday’s Michigan State-Michigan Big Ten Tournament final had a 2.5 overnight on CBS — up 19% from last year, when the tournament took place a week before Championship Week (Michigan-Purdue: 2.1).
Saturday’s Tennessee-Kentucky SEC Tournament semifinal had a 2.1 on ESPN, tying the tournament’s highest overnight since the 2010 final (Kentucky-Mississippi State: 2.7). Overnights for this year’s final were not immediately available.
Players Championship solid despite decline, date change
Final round coverage of The Players Championship scored a 3.3 overnight rating on NBC Sunday afternoon, down 21% from last year, when Tiger Woods finished just outside of the top ten (4.2), but up 27% from 2017 (2.6). Woods finished in a tie for 30th this year.
Despite the decline, the Players trailed only the NCAA Tournament Selection Show as the top sporting event of the weekend. Keep in mind that prior to this year, the tournament took place in May.
Third round coverage on Saturday had a 2.4 (-8%).
Third-straight uptick for NASCAR
NASCAR Cup Series racing from Fontana (Ca.) delivered a 2.5 overnight rating on FOX, up a tick from last year (2.4), but down 14% from 2017 (2.9). Fontana was the third straight NASCAR race to post an uptick in overnight ratings, and the fourth of five this season.
[Numbers from CBS Sports, Fox Sports, ESPN PR 3.17 a, b, Sports Business Daily 3.18]
