There are few surer things in the ratings business than Kentucky, in overtime, with the Final Four on the line.
Sunday’s Auburn-Kentucky NCAA Tournament regional final earned a 6.4 rating and 10.49 million viewers on CBS, up 17% in ratings and 20% in viewership from last year (Villanova-Texas Tech: 5.4, 8.76M), and up 8% in both measures from 2017 (South Carolina-Florida: 5.9, 9.67M).
The Tigers’ upset win ranks as the highest rated and most-watched early Sunday regional final in four years (2015 Michigan State-Louisville: 6.7, 10.56M).
Outside of the 2015 game, it was the highest rated in the window since 2011 (VCU-Kansas: 6.5) and the most-watched since at least 2008.
Despite the strong numbers, ratings and viewership were the lowest for a Kentucky game in the Elite Eight since their 2012 win over Baylor (5.0, 8.24M). Not coincidentally, that was the last time the Wildcats played in the early Sunday window.
Kentucky’s previous Elite Eight game, against North Carolina in 2017, had an 8.9 and 15.47 million in the late Sunday window.
For the tournament, Auburn-Kentucky ranks third in ratings and viewership behind Michigan State-Duke later in the day (9.4, 16.20M) and Duke-UCF in the second round (7.8, 12.88M).
The game had a 2.7 rating in adults 18-49, up 17% from last year (2.3).
[Numbers from Nielsen via ShowBuzz Daily 4.2]
