CBS posted a pair of increases for its college basketball coverage last weekend. In other action, ESPN posted declines for a Kentucky game on Saturday, and ARCA racing from Daytona also fell year-over-year.
Good Weekend For College Hoops on CBS
- CBS scored a 1.3 final rating and 1.9 million viewers for Sunday’s Maryland/Wisconsin college basketball game, up a tick in ratings and up 8% in viewership from Michigan/Maryland last year (1.2, 1.8M) and up a tick and 9% respectively from Ohio State/Michigan in 2015 (1.2, 1.8M). The Badgers’ win ranks just outside the top ten most-watched games this season. The previous day, Kansas/Baylor had a 1.0 (+25%) and 1.5 million (+23%).
No Kentucky Bump For ESPN Saturday
- Saturday’s Kentucky/Georgia college basketball game scored a 1.0 final rating and 1.7 million viewers on ESPN, down 16% in ratings and 13% in viewership from the Wildcats’ matchup with Texas A&M last year (1.2, 2.0M) and down 23% and 16% respectively from their 2015 game against Auburn (1.3, 2.1M). Later in the night, Virginia/North Carolina had a 1.0 (+11%) and 1.6 million (+16%) opposite NBA All-Star Saturday Night. In other action, Miami/Virginia and Texas/West Virginia both had 1.1 million on Big Monday — down 2% and 15% respectively from last year’s doubleheader of Virginia/Miami (1.1M) and Iowa State/West Virginia (1.3M).
ARCA Daytona Race Slips
- ARCA Series racing from Daytona scored a 0.6 final rating and 957,000 viewers on Fox Sports 1 Saturday afternoon, down a tick in ratings and 10% in viewership from last year (0.7, 1.1M) and flat but up 4% respectively from 2015 (0.6, 919K). For reference, the race had 2.6 million back in 2010, when it served as Danica Patrick‘s stock car debut.
