Nearly 23 million viewers watched Kentucky’s first defeat of the season.
Saturday’s Wisconsin/Kentucky NCAA Tournament Final Four game drew a 12.4 rating and 22.6 million viewers on TBS, TNT and TruTV, according to Nielsen fast-nationals — up 35% in ratings and 39% in viewership from Kentucky/Wisconsin last year (9.2, 16.3M), and up 22% and 32%, respectively, from Michigan/Syracuse on CBS in 2013 (10.2, 17.1M).
The Badgers’ upset win ranks as the highest rated Final Four national semifinal since Utah/North Carolina in 1998 (12.7), and only the ninth game over that span to earn a double-digit rating (34 telecasts). It also stands as the most-watched national semifinal since 1996.
Additionally, the game was the most-watched non-football program in cable history — and by a wide margin. The previous record was 18.2 million* for the USA/Portugal World Cup match on ESPN last June.
Including football games, it was the eighth-most watched cable program ever. Only the inaugural College Football Playoff (three telecasts) and the old BCS National Championship Game (four telecasts) earned a larger audience, all on ESPN. No NFL game on cable has ever earned as large an audience.
The end of the Wildcats’ undefeated run earned a larger audience than their last two trips to the national championship game — Connecticut/Kentucky last year (21.2M) and Kentucky/Kansas in 2012 (20.3M). Overall, it topped all-but-two national championship games over the past decade, trailing only Louisville/Michigan in 2013 (23.4M) and Duke/Butler in 2010 (23.9M).
Compared to other sports, it outdrew all five games of last year’s NBA Finals and six of last year’s seven World Series telecasts (Game 7 had a 13.7 and 23.5 million). It also topped the race portion of The Belmont Stakes, which saw California Chrome go for a Triple Crown (11.9, 20.4M).
* Keep in mind that World Cup match also aired on broadcast network Univision, earning a larger combined audience (24.7M).
(Wknd. numbers from Turner Sports)
