ESPN saw its most-viewed NBA season-opening doubleheader last Friday, which featured Heat-Knicks and Clippers-Lakers. The doubleheader averaged 2.9 million viewers, up 5% from opening day last year, which aired on Christmas Day (2.6 million viewers). The figure is also up 65% from the opener in '10-11, which aired on a Wednesday (ESPN).
WALK THE DINOSAUR: The Raptors season-opener Oct. 31 against the Pacers on TSN drew an estimated 346,000 viewers, which marks the team's second-highest opening night broadcast audience in franchise history. It also marks TSN's largest NBA broadcast audience since April 11, 2010 (MLSE). Meanwhile, the same game on FS Indiana generated a 3.3 rating in central Indiana, "making it the highest rated Pacers opener since 2007" (IBJ.com, 11/8).
ROCKET MAN: In Houston, David Barron wrote while Rockets fans "clamor for increased carriage of Comcast SportsNet Houston," the Wednesday night Nuggets-Rockets game drew 0.66 local rating in Houston. Games last season averaged a 1.5 local rating on FS Houston. Comcast is "seeking a reported $3.40 per subscriber per month for CSN Houston" (CHRON.com, 11/8).
The charts below list final Nielsen ratings from recent sports telecasts.Figures for select programs on Fox were unavailable at presstime.
| TELECAST |
DATE
|
NET
|
TIME (ET)
|
RAT.
|
VIEWERS (000)
|
| "NFL on CBS": Steelers-Giants (96%) |
11/4
|
CBS
|
4:15-7:30pm
|
14.7
|
n/a
|
"Sunday Night Football":
Cowboys-Falcons |
11/4
|
NBC
|
8:31-11:28pm
|
13.2
|
21,758
|
| "NFL on CBS": (regional) |
11/4
|
CBS
|
1:00-4:15pm
|
9.3
|
n/a
|
| NCAA Football: Alabama-LSU |
11/3
|
CBS
|
8:00-11:55pm
|
6.8
|
11,349
|
| "Football Night in America" |
11/4
|
NBC
|
7:30-8:15pm
|
6.1
|
9,864
|
| NCAA Football: Pitt-Notre Dame |
11/3
|
NBC
|
3:30-8:00pm
|
3.8
|
6,030
|
| NCAA Football: Oregon-USC |
11/3
|
Fox
|
7:02-11:47pm
|
2.8
|
4,505
|
| NCAA Football: (regional) |
11/3
|
ABC
|
3:32-7:20pm
|
2.7
|
n/a
|
| "The NFL Today" |
11/4
|
CBS
|
12:00-1:00pm
|
2.5
|
n/a
|
| Breeders' Cup Classic |
11/3
|
NBC
|
8:00-9:00pm
|
2.0
|
3,056
|
| NCAA Football: (regional) |
11/3
|
ABC
|
12:01-3:32pm
|
1.9
|
n/a
|
NCAA Football:
Oklahoma State-Kansas State |
11/3
|
ABC
|
8:07-11:42pm
|
1.9
|
2,873
|
| NCAA Football: Ole Miss-Georgia |
11/3
|
CBS
|
3:30-7:00pm
|
1.9
|
n/a
|
| Liga MX: Club America-Pachuca |
11/3
|
Univ.
|
6:30-9:00pm
|
0.6
|
1,066
|
| "College Football Today" |
11/3
|
CBS
|
3:00-3:30pm
|
0.5
|
n/a
|
| "Sports Illustrated" |
11/3
|
NBC
|
2:30-3:30pm
|
0.4
|
n/a
|
| World of Adventure Sports (taped) |
11/4
|
NBC
|
2:30-3:30pm
|
0.3
|
n/a
|
MLS Conference Semis:
Sporting KC-Dynamo |
11/4
|
NBC
|
3:30-6:00pm
|
0.3
|
n/a
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
NOTE: All figures exclude the N.Y. and Philadelphia markets due to the effects from Hurricane Sandy.
| TELECAST |
DATE
|
NET
|
TIME (ET)
|
RAT.
|
VIEWERS (000)
|
"Monday Night Football":
49ers-Cardinals |
10/29
|
ESPN
|
8:30-11:33pm
|
6.8
|
10,721
|
| NBA: Celtics-Heat |
10/30
|
TNT
|
8:04-10:48pm
|
3.4
|
5,371
|
"Thursday Night Football":
Chiefs-Chargers |
11/1
|
NFLN
|
8:31-11:23pm
|
3.0
|
4,795
|
| NBA: Mavericks-Lakers |
10/30
|
TNT
|
10:48pm-1:25am
|
2.9
|
4,298
|
| NASCAR Sprint Cup: Texas |
11/4
|
ESPN
|
3:00-7:10pm
|
2.5
|
3,943
|
| NBA: Clippers-Lakers |
11/2
|
ESPN
|
10:37pm-1:20am
|
2.1
|
3,062
|
| "Thursday Night Pre-Kick" |
11/1
|
NFLN
|
8:00-8:31pm
|
1.8
|
2,819
|
| NBA: Heat-Knicks |
11/2
|
ESPN
|
8:00-10:37pm
|
1.8
|
2,783
|
| NCAA Football: Missouri-Florida |
11/3
|
ESPN2
|
12:00-3:23pm
|
1.5
|
2,268
|
| NCAA Football: Illinois-Ohio State |
11/3
|
ESPN
|
3:30-6:55pm
|
1.3
|
2,164
|
