The NBA delivered one of sports’ largest audiences in months with a rare Sunday night game on ABC.
Sunday’s Rockets-Lakers second round NBA playoff Game 2 averaged a 2.9 rating and 5.43 million viewers on ABC, marking the highest rated and most-watched NBA game since Christmas (Clippers-Lakers: 4.6, 8.76M). It was the NBA’s first Sunday night playoff game on broadcast television since 2002.
The Lakers’ win, which peaked with 7.01 million viewers from 10:45-11 PM ET, also ranks as the fourth-most watched sporting event since the NFL Draft — behind the previous day’s Kentucky Derby (9.26M), NASCAR’s return at Darlington (6.32M) and the golf exhibition “The Match” (5.67M).
Ratings increased 16% and viewership 34% from a similar Sunday night window on TNT last year (Nuggets-Blazers Game 4: 2.5, 4.06M). Compared to ABC’s lone primetime second round game last year, Warriors-Rockets Game 3 on a Saturday, ratings fell 34% (from 4.4) and viewership 25% (from 7.23M).
Compared to the same Labor Day weekend window last year, ratings and viewership were off slightly from ABC’s Houston-Oklahoma college football game (3.0, 5.44M) — though the NBA performed significantly better in adults 18-34 (1.7 to 1.1), 18-49 (2.0 to 1.5) and 25-54 (2.2 to 1.9).
In particular, Sunday’s 2.0 rating in 18-49 was television’s highest in the demo since the season finale of “The Masked Singer” on FOX in May (2.3). The 1.7 in adults 18-34 surpassed “The Masked Singer” (1.6) to tie TV’s highest rating in the demo since episode 7 of ESPN’s “The Last Dance” in May (1.8).
Game 1 of the series on Friday averaged a 2.0 and 4.04 million on ESPN, ranking third for the playoffs behind Sunday’s Game 2 and Thunder-Rockets Game 7 last week (4.29M). Ratings fell 23% and viewership 1% from last year’s similar window (Bucks-Celtics Game 3: 2.6, 4.06M).
Elsewhere in the playoffs, Sunday’s Bucks-Heat Game 4 averaged a 1.9 and 3.58 million on ABC — down 37% in ratings and 23% in viewership from the comparable window last year (Raptors-Sixers Game 4: 3.0, 4.63M). The 1.9 rating is the second-lowest ever for a playoff game on ABC.
If low by typical standards, the Bucks’ lone win of the series delivered the fifth-largest audience of the playoffs. Five of the seven most-watched playoff games have come since the league’s three-day suspension of play last month.
Game 3 of the series averaged a 1.3 and 2.22 million on ESPN Friday.
Rounding out the recent action, Game 4 of Raptors-Celtics averaged a 1.4 and 2.56 million on Saturday and Game 3 a 1.4 and 2.44 million last Thursday. Finally, Nuggets-Clippers opened with a 1.6 and 2.58 million last Thursday, before bumping up to a 1.6 and 2.96 million for Saturday’s Game 2.
Figures for Monday’s Labor Day games were not immediately available. As of August 31, all Nielsen viewership figures include out-of-home viewing. That does not apply to the household ratings.
