The Easter Sunday holiday featured several viewership highs, including the most-watched basketball game of any kind in two years and the most-watched Premier League match on record.
Sunday’s NC State-Duke NCAA men’s basketball tournament regional final averaged a 6.4 rating and 15.14 million viewers on CBS, marking the largest basketball audience since the 2022 men’s national championship and the most-watched Elite Eight game since 2019. Ratings increased 5% from last year, but viewership was up a whopping 34% thanks to the elevated out-of-home audience of Easter Sunday.
Earlier in the day, Purdue-Tennessee drew a 4.4 (-6%) and 10.39 million (+25%). For more on the men’s tournament ratings, see the preceding link.
Placing third for the day, a primetime NASCAR Cup Series race from Richmond averaged a 1.8 and 3.31 million on FOX — up 40% in ratings and 44% in viewership from last year on FS1 (1.3, 2.30M), but down 21% and 16% respectively from the previous FOX edition two years ago (2.3, 3.96M). Compared to Bristol on Easter Sunday last year, ratings fell a tick and viewership 4% from a 1.9 and 3.45 million.
Returning to the hardwood, ABC averaged a 1.6 and 3.07 million for Oregon State-South Carolina and a 1.4 and 2.47 million for NC State-Texas in a women’s Elite Eight doubleheader. Despite airing opposite the men’s Elite Eight, viewership increased 26% from last year’s Sunday games, which aired in primetime on ESPN and featured both Iowa and LSU.
Further down the dial, an Arsenal-Manchester City English Premier League match drew a combined 1.1 and 2.04 million across NBC (0.8, 1.57M) and Telemundo (0.25, 470K) — the largest EPL audience on record. In other soccer action, FOX drew a 0.11 and 206,000 for an Atlanta-Chicago MLS match.
The final round of the PGA Tour Houston Open drew a 1.0 and 1.86 million on NBC — a mixed bag compared to last year’s 1.15 and 1.81 million for the final round of the Texas Open. The Houston Open had not been held at this time of year since 2018.
ESPN averaged a 0.8 and 1.82 million for Cardinals-Dodgers on the season premiere of Sunday Night Baseball, down a tick in ratings but up 17% in viewership compared to Phillies-Rangers on both ESPN and ESPN2 last year (0.9, 1.56M).
In other action, the Pro Bull Riding Tour drew a 0.6 and 1.03 million on CBS, its largest audience since January (1.16M). The second day of the UFL season averaged a 0.42 and 837,000 viewers on ESPN, including a 0.48 and 960,000 for DC-San Antonio and a 0.35 and 703,000 for Memphis-Houston.
NBA TV drew a 0.29 and 604,000 for Warriors-Spurs — the network’s most-watched NBA game since Cavaliers-Warriors in November (645K) — and a 0.10 and 229,000 for Cavaliers-Nuggets earlier in the day.
ESPN2 scored a 0.24 and 569,000 for a Michigan-Michigan State NCAA men’s hockey regional final, up sharply from Penn State-Michigan last year (0.20, 358K), which itself was up sharply from Minnesota-Western Michigan two years ago (0.12, 226K). Quinnipiac-Boston College led in at a 0.10 and 238,000. Both games outdrew the NHL on TNT, which had a mere 0.09 and 195,000 for Ducks-Canucks.
The Jannik Sinner-Gregor Dimitrov Miami Open tennis men’s final drew a 0.20 and 383,000 on Tennis Channel.
Sunday, March 31 sports ratings
