A dramatic and controversial Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals delivered strong numbers on ABC.
Sunday’s Spurs-Warriors NBA West Finals Game 1 had a 4.6 final rating and 8.1 million viewers on ABC, down 13% in ratings and 7% in viewership from Thunder-Warriors on TNT last year (5.3, 8.7M) but up 5% and 19% respectively from Rockets-Warriors on ESPN in 2015 (4.4, 6.8M), both of which aired on weeknights in primetime.
Compared to last year’s conference final on ESPN/ABC, ratings increased 35% and viewership 50% from a 3.4 and 5.4 million for Raptors-Cavaliers.
The Warriors’ win delivered the second-largest audience for Game 1 of the West Finals since 2002, behind only last year. Including Eastern Conference series, it was the fifth-most watched Game 1 in the past 15 years. It ranks lower in the ratings department — fifth among West Final openers and eighth overall.
Not counting the NBA Finals, Game 1 was also ABC’s most-watched NBA playoff telecast in six years, since Lakers-Mavericks Game 4 in 2011 (8.9M). For the season, it was the second-most watched game on any network behind Warriors-Cavaliers on ABC Christmas Day (10.1M).
Figures do not include the 182,000 who streamed coverage on the WatchESPN app, bringing the total audience up to 8.3 million. Including streaming, the telecast peaked with 11.4 million viewers from 6-6:15 PM ET.
Game 1 delivered a 2.9 rating in adults 18-49, easily the highest rated television program of the day in the demo. NBC’s Little Big Shots ranked a distant second (1.3). It won the day in adults 18-34 and 25-54 as well.
Through Sunday, ESPN/ABC has averaged 4.4 million viewers for the NBA playoffs (+8%), a figure that includes streaming.
(Sun. numbers from ESPN Media Zone 5.16, ShowBuzz Daily 5.16)
