Primetime Preliminary Fast National Nielsen Data
(includes all DVR playback through 3:00 am)

Here are the highlights of the six ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (3/18/17):

CBS (5.355 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) was the network to beat on Saturday with its primetime portion of the "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament" (5.467 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) and a new "48 Hours" (5.132 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2).

NBC (2.454 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #2) then was the silver draw with the feature "Fast Five" (2.454 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #3).

Next up was ABC (1.708 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.4, #3) and its weekly "NBA Countdown" (1.630 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T5) and "NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC" (1.723 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #4).

And finally on FOX (0.760 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.3, #4), "Monster Energy Supercross" (0.760 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T5) rounded out the night.

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

· A March 18 encore of "Saturday Night Live," with host Casey Affleck and musical guest Chance the Rapper, has averaged a 3.2 rating, 8 share in households in Nielsen's 56 metered markets and a 1.3/7 in 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

· Versus what the show averaged last year with March rebroadcasts, last night's "Saturday Night Live" is up +14% in metered-market households (3.2 vs. 2.8) and up +8% in 18-49 in the local people meters (1.3 vs. 1.2 for March 2016 encores).

· In fact, the 3.2 rating in households and the 1.3 in 18-49 in the local people meters beats 26 of 27 encores of "SNL" from last season in both categories.

Here are the highlights of the nine ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (3/19/16):

CBS (5.599 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) was the top draw on Saturday with its primetime coverage of the "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament" (5.952 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.8, #1) and "48 Hours" (4.893 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3).

ABC (4.003 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) then was a competitive second with its own coverage of "NBA Countdown" (2.673 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.7, #6) and "NBA on ABC" (4.269 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2).

Next up was NBC (4.430 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3) and its duo of "Dateline NBC" (5.006 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4) and a vintage "Saturday Night Live" (3.277 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4).

And finally, repeats of "Rosewood" (1.390 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.3, #8) and "Lucifer" (1.411 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.4, #7) on FOX (1.400 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #4) closed out the night.

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

· The March 19 encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live," with host Chris Hemsworth and musical guest Chance the Rapper, averaged a 2.9 rating, 7 share in household results from the 56 markets metered-by Nielsen Media Research and a 1.1/5 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

· "Saturday Night Live" equaled its metered-market rating for the same night last (2.9/7 vs 2.9/7 on March 21, 2015 with host Kevin Hart and musical guest Sia). "SNL" was the #1 non-sports telecast of the night in 18-49 in the local people meters.

· Note that "SNL" adds significant viewership via time-shifting, with originals growing by +48% going from L+SD to L+7 in adults 18-49 (1.98 to 2.94) and +2.260 million persons in total viewers (6.509 million to 8.769 million).

Source: Nielsen Media Research