The opener between the Hornets and Lakers attracted the largest audience in eight years for the opening weekend of the NBA Playoffs on ABC.
ABC earned a 3.7 final rating and 5.950 million viewers for the Hornets’ Game 1 win over the Lakers on April 17, up 12% in ratings and 16% in viewership from last year (OKC/LAL G1: 3.3, 5.132M), and up 16% and 23%, respectively, from 2009 (UTA/LAL G1: 3.2, 4.830M).
Hornets/Lakers Game 1 ranks as ABC’s highest rated, most-viewed opening weekend NBA Playoff game since 2003 (LAL/MIN G1: 4.1, 6.290M).
That said, the game did not even earn the top audience of the day, falling just shy of Knicks/Celtics Game 1 on TNT (5.989M).
One day earlier, Game 1 between the 76ers and Heat drew a 3.0 and 4.546 million viewers, up 20% in ratings and 24% in viewership from last year (CHI/CLE G1: 2.5, 3.679M), and up 36% and 46%, respectively, from 2009 (DET/CLE G1: 2.2, 3.125M).
Overall, ABC averaged a 3.4 rating and 5.254 million viewers for the opening weekend of the postseason, up 17% and 19%, respectively, from last year (2.9, 4.432M).
(Numbers from Media Life Magazine, ESPN Media Zone)
