North Carolina's Latest Title Earns CBS 11.9/19 Overnight Rating

UNC's Double-Digit Halftime Lead Does Not Help Ratings

LOST IN THE MOMENT: CNBC.com's Darren Rovell notes CBS' Greg Gumbel last night introduced the "One Shining Moment" montage "one minute and five seconds" after midnight ET, meaning viewers "would have had to record" CBS' "Late Show" in order to save it. And after North Carolina "jumped to huge leads that Michigan State couldn't chip away at, many people undoubtedly went to sleep and relied on their DVR" (CNBC.com, 4/7).

SEMIFINAL NUMBERS: USA TODAY's Bob Kimball notes Final Four overnight ratings on CBS heading into last night's title game were up 7.1% over last year, which are "good numbers for a network gearing up for Tiger Woods at The Masters" (USA TODAY, 4/7). In Milwaukee, Bob Wolfley notes WDJT-CBS earned an 11.0 local rating for Saturday's UNC-Villanova national semifinal game, "slightly higher" than a 10.3 rating for the MSU-Connecticut game (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 4/7).

PICKING APART THE COVERAGE: In N.Y., Bob Raissman writes the "best thing" about the conclusion of CBS' coverage of the tournament is "not having to hear Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg front for" Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun. Nantz and Kellogg during the MSU-UConn game "portrayed him as being picked on by the media" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 4/7). The DETROIT NEWS writes Detroit "got short shrift" during the Final Four coverage, as CBS "showed few obligatory shots of the Motor City." The net was "relying instead on the face" of Michigan State alumnus and Basketball HOFer Magic Johnson as a "fan barometer for the crowd" (DETROIT NEWS, 4/7).

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