Final Four ratings lowest since ’03.

Ratings failed to rev up for the Final Four.

The National Semifinals and National Championship game combined to average a 9.0 rating on CBS Saturday and Monday, down 4% from a 9.4 last year, and the lowest average since an 8.9 in ’03.

Both games involving eventual champion North Carolina saw declining ratings. The Tar Heels’ title-clinching victory over Michigan State on Monday night drew a 10.8/17 rating, down 11% from a 12.1 last year, and the lowest rating ever for the National Championship game.

Two nights earlier, North Carolina’s semifinal win over Villanova drew an 8.5/16 final rating, off 3% from an 8.8 for last year’s North Carolina/Kansas game, and the lowest rating for the late National Semifinal game since ’06.

Only one of the three games in Detroit managed to see increased ratings from last year. Michigan State’s victory over Connecticut on Saturday drew a 7.8/17 final rating on CBS, up 8% from a 7.2 for last year’s comparable Memphis/UCLA tilt. Despite the increase, the 7.8 is the third-lowest for any Final Four telecast in the past ten years.

To put the 9.0 average for the Final Four in perspective, the 2008 NBA Finals averaged a 9.3 and January’s Bowl Championship Series averaged a 10.2. The 9.0 does finish ahead of the 8.4 rating for the 2008 World Series.

Ratings for the Final Four since 1999.