or


[04/15/18 - 08:31 AM]
ESPN & ABC's NBA Playoffs Opening Saturday Ratings Highest in Five Years
ESPN spins the numbers for Saturday, April 14.
[via press release from ESPN]

ESPN & ABC's NBA Playoffs Opening Saturday Ratings Highest In Five Years

· Quadruple-header Up 17 Percent From 2017; All Four of Saturday's First Round Game 1 Telecasts Up From Corresponding Games Last Year

· Philadelphia-Miami Telecast is Highest-Rated Opening Saturday Game on ESPN in Six Years

ESPN and ABC's NBA Playoffs opening Saturday coverage was up 17 percent, making it the highest-rated opening Saturday in five years (since 2013), according to metered market ratings from Nielsen. The four-game slate averaged a 2.7 metered market rating and all four telecasts were up year over year from their corresponding windows.

The Philadelphia 76ers victory over the Miami Heat drew a 2.9 metered market rating, up 26 percent from last year's San Antonio Spurs-Memphis Grizzlies game. The Sixers-Heat telecast is the highest-rated opening Saturday game on ESPN in six years (since 2012).

On ABC, the Golden State Warriors win over the Spurs drew a 3.3 metered market rating, up 14 percent from last year's Cleveland Cavaliers-Indiana Pacers matchup that drew a 2.9.

The Toronto Raptors Game 1 victory over the Washington Wizards delivered a 2.1 metered market rating, up 17 percent from the Raptors-Bucks game last year that drew a 1.8. In Saturday's nightcap, the New Orleans Pelicans Game 1 win over the Portland Trail Blazers generated a 2.3 metered market rating, up 10 percent from the LA Clippers-Utah Jazz game last year (2.1).

The NBA Playoffs continue today on ABC as the Cleveland Cavaliers host the Indiana Pacers in their first round Game 1 matchup. The broadcast starts at 3:30 p.m. ET with Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson and Lisa Salters calling their second game of the weekend.

Additionally, the second edition of Kobe Bryant's Detail, exclusively on ESPN+, will be available as early as Sunday night. It features the five-time NBA Champion Bryant providing high-level analysis of Saturday's Raptors game, from the standpoint of Raptors star DeMar DeRozan.

ESPN and ABC's NBA audience was up across platforms for the 2017-18 regular season.





  [april 2018]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)




most recent ratings | view all posts
[10/07/25 - 03:52 PM]
FOX Sports' ALDS Coverage Up 14% Year-Over-Year Across FOX and FS1
3,187,000 viewers tuned in on average for the first four games of the 2025 ALDS across FOX and FS1.
[10/07/25 - 03:10 PM]
"College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" Delivers Second Most-Watched Regular Season Episode Ever; ESPN & ABC Score Three of Week 6's Top Four Games
ABC's telecast of Vanderbilt at Alabama on Saturday averaged 6.4 million viewers.
[10/07/25 - 02:54 PM]
College Football on FOX Scores Big in Week Six
In Week 6, "Big Noon Saturday" scored 4,627,000 viewers for Michigan's 24-10 win over Wisconsin on FOX - the most-watched noon game on any network.
[10/07/25 - 02:54 PM]
ESPN Scores Most-Watched Game 1 of the WNBA Finals in 28 Years
Coverage averaged 1.9 million viewers, up 62% from last year.
[10/07/25 - 02:40 PM]
"America's Game of the Week" on FOX Roars in Week 5 as Most-Watched Telecast of the Week on Any Network
20,333,000 average viewers on average tuned into the network for Week 5.
[10/07/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of September 29: "French Lover" Swoons at No. 1, "Monster: The Ed Gein Story" Chills in Top 10 Debut
Plus: "Wayward" reached No. 1 on the TV list for a second consecutive week, with 14.1 million views.
[10/06/25 - 10:04 AM]
ESPN Sets Multiple MLB Wild Card Series Viewership Records
ESPN networks averaged 4,625,000 viewers across 11 games, making it the most-watched Wild Card Series ever under the current format.

[10/03/25 - 02:46 PM]
With Largest Viewership in 7 Years, "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in All Key Demos for Season Premiere
"Nightline" drew its largest overall audience in nearly 2 years and delivered its strongest Adult 25-54 performance in 20 months.
[10/03/25 - 02:45 PM]
"20/20" Is Friday's No. 1 Newsmagazine in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49
"20/20" opened its new season with its strongest performance in Total Viewers (2.752 million) and Adults 25-54 (386,000) in over 3 months.
[10/03/25 - 02:17 PM]
ESPN's Record-Setting '25 MLB Wild Card Series
Across eight games, the MLB Wild Card Series is averaging 4.4 million viewers, up 65% from last year.
[10/03/25 - 12:07 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Continues to Shatter Records - Growing Two Weeks in a Row Since Season Premiere for First Time Since 2005
Plus: "High Potential" hit a season high in Total Viewers (4.24 million), growing by double digits over the show's comparable third episode from last fall.
[10/02/25 - 04:09 PM]
ESPN Delivers the Most-Watched WNBA Semifinals Ever
Game 5 between the Indiana Fever and the Las Vegas Aces averaged 1.8 million viewers, peaking at 2.1 million.
[10/02/25 - 02:51 PM]
ESPN's Record-Setting Day One of MLB Wild Card Series
Coverage of Red Sox versus Yankees averaged 6.5 million viewers, peaking at 9.9 million.
[10/02/25 - 11:00 AM]
"Survivor" and "The Amazing Race" Season Premieres Hit Their Largest 3-Day Streaming Viewerships Ever
The "Survivor" season 49 premiere grew to 6.83 million viewers with three days of multiplatform viewership; while "The Amazing Race" season 38 premiere grew to 4.01 million viewers.
[10/02/25 - 09:38 AM]
"Celebrity Wheel of Fortune" Scores on Friday Nights with Biggest Total Viewer Audience in Nearly Two Years
"Celebrity Wheel of Fortune" stood as the No. 1 program of the night, rising by double digits in Total Viewers over its previous season premiere.