March Madness has proven to be the perfect antidote to the NBA’s increased ratings.
For the third straight week, ratings plunged for the NBA on ABC. Sunday’s matchup between the Heat and Pistons drew a 1.4/3 overnight rating, down 22% from a 1.8 for last year’s comparable Spurs/Mavericks tilt, but up 17% from a 1.2 overnight for the Suns/Kings game on the comparable date two years ago.
The 1.4 overnight is the second lowest ever for an NBA game on broadcast, ahead of only the aforementioned 1.2 for Suns/Kings in ’07.
So far this season, NBA games have averaged a 21% decline from the overnight to the final rating, putting Heat/Pistons on pace for a 1.1 final rating, which would be tied as the second-lowest ever for an NBA game on broadcast.
ABC’s first eight Sunday afternoon NBA telecasts averaged a 3.2 overnight rating, up 19% from the comparable games last year. By comparison, the network’s last three NBA telecasts have averaged a 1.9 overnight, down 22% from last year’s comparable games.
Lowest overnight ratings for NBA games on broadcast.
| Date | Time | Game | Net | Rating |
| Sun., 3/25/07 | 3:30 PM | Suns/Kings | ABC | 1.2 |
| Sun., 3/22/09 | 1:00 PM | Heat/Pistons | ABC | 1.4 |
| Sun., 3/11/07 | 3:30 PM | Nuggets/Kings | ABC | 1.5 |
| Sun., 3/18/07 | 3:30 PM | Mavericks/Pistons | ABC | 1.6 |
| Sun., 3/28/04 | 1:30 PM | Mavericks/Magic | ABC | 1.6 |
