Overnight ratings for the WNBA Finals were the highest in at least seven years on ESPN. In other news, Sunday Night Baseball had a slight increase opposite the NFL and ESPN’s coverage of the U.S. Open was mostly on par with last year.
ESPN Ties Seven-Year High For WNBA Finals
- Game 2 of the Sky/Mercury WNBA Finals drew a 0.6 overnight rating on ESPN Tuesday night, tied as the highest for any WNBA playoff game on ESPN or ESPN2 since at least 2007. The game matched Game 4 of the 2007 Shock/Mercury finals, which aired on ESPN2. Locally, Phoenix topped all markets with a 1.9 rating, followed by Atlanta (1.7), New Orleans (1.4), Las Vegas (1.4) and Hartford-New Haven (1.3). (ESPN Media Zone)
Slight Uptick For Sunday Night Baseball
- The Giants/Tigers Sunday Night Baseball game drew 1.3 million viewers on ESPN, up 3% from Dodgers/Reds last year (1.32M to 1.28M), but the third-smallest Sunday night audience of the season. The past four Sunday Night Baseball games rank as the four least-viewed of the season. (Sun. numbers from TV By the Numbers)
ESPN’s U.S. Open Coverage on Par With Last Year
- Coverage of the U.S. Open averaged a 0.6 U.S. rating and 760,000 viewers on ESPN and ESPN2 this year, flat in ratings and down 5% in viewership from last year (0.6, 800K). ESPN will have exclusive rights to the entire U.S. Open beginning next year. (ESPN)
