WNBA Finals Gets Viewership Boost After Return To Broadcast TV Network

The return of the WNBA Finals to broadcast TV has given the event a boost in the audience department. ABC aired Game 1 of the Finals for the first time since ’10, with the Sky-Mercury opener on Sunday afternoon drawing 627,000 viewers. That figure is up 39% from Storm-Dream Game 1 on ABC in ’10, which drew 450,000 viewers in the same time slot. Game 1 this year also was the best Finals opener since Comets-Liberty on ESPN in ’00. Sky-Mercury Game 2 on Tuesday drew 763,000 viewers on ESPN. The last time the second game of the Finals aired on ESPN was in ’12, with Fever-Lynx drawing 778,000 viewers on a Wednesday night. Meanwhile, the ’14 WNBA Playoffs averaged 114,000 viewers on NBA TV, marking a record playoff audience for the network and up 30% from last year. Mercury-Lynx Western Conference Finals Game 3 on Sept. 2 drew 210,000 viewers on NBA TV, marking the net’s best WNBA Playoff audience on record.