On a mixed weekend for the NBA, Lakers-Knicks topped the Saturday charts despite a modest decline from a year ago. Plus: figures for NASCAR’s Clash at Bowman-Gray Stadium and the PGA Tour at Pebble Beach.
Lakers-Knicks down, still tops day that included Duke-UNC
Saturday’s Lakers-Knicks NBA regular season game averaged 2.51 million viewers on ABC, down 8% from the same matchup on the same weekend last year (2.74M), but the most-watched sporting event of a day that included the Duke-North Carolina men’s college basketball rivalry. It was also the most-watched primetime show of the night and the top program of the day among viewers under 50.
For the season, the Lakers’ win ranks tenth among NBA telecasts, with nine of the top 11 having aired on broadcast television.
On Sunday, ESPN averaged 1.66 million for Celtics-Sixers following the NFL Pro Bowl — up 12% from Clippers-Heat in that window last year (1.49M), and the most-watched NBA game on cable since Thunder-Cavaliers on ESPN early last month. Grizzlies-Bucks followed with 1.48 million.
Rounding out the recent NBA slate, ESPN drew 1.17 million for Suns-Warriors and 1.12 million for Nuggets-Sixers on Friday.
NASCAR Clash up from last year’s rain-affected edition, down from ’23
Sunday’s NASCAR Clash at Bowman-Gray Stadium (Winston-Salem, N.C.) averaged a 1.55 rating and 3.08 million viewers on FOX — up from last year’s weather-impacted race at the Los Angeles Coliseum, which was moved from Sunday night on FOX to Saturday night on FS1 (0.8, 1.51M). Compared to the previous edition of the race to run as scheduled, ratings and viewership fell from a 2.0 and 3.65 million in 2023.
The Clash delivered the third-largest sports audience of the weekend behind the final round of the PGA Tour at Pebble Beach and the NFL Pro Bowl Games.
Pebble Beach final round is most-watched in four years
Sunday’s final round of the PGA Tour at Pebble Beach averaged 3.33 million viewers on CBS, the highest for the event in four years and the most-watched final round of any non-major tournament since last year’s Players Championship. Rory McIlroy’s win, which peaked with nearly four million viewers, increased solidly from the previous final round to be played as scheduled in 2023 (2.27M). (Last year’s final round was impacted by weather.)
