Given the headwinds, the NCAA Tournament is off to as good a start as can be reasonably expected.
Through Sunday, coverage of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament averaged a combined 8.5 million viewers per window across CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV, according to multiple reports Tuesday — down a scant 3% from the comparable period in 2019. That comes with the caveat that this year’s first two rounds ran from Friday to Monday, rather than the usual Thursday through Sunday. Monday’s numbers, still incomplete, indicate that the Thursday-Monday average is likely further off of the 2019 pace.
Sunday’s Syracuse-West Virginia game ranks as the most-watched of the tournament thus far with a 4.5 rating and 7.86 million viewers on CBS — the largest non-football sports audience since last year’s World Series. Ratings nonetheless declined 16% and viewership 12% from the comparable window on day three of the 2019 tournament, a Saturday (Michigan-Florida: 5.4, 8.88M).
Versus the comparable Sunday window in ’19 — Zion Williamson and Duke edging UCF — ratings fell 42% (from 7.8) and viewership 39% (from 12.88M).
The full telecast window, which included Houston-Rutgers on TBS (1.5, 2.79M) and Arkansas-Texas Tech on TNT (1.4, 2.57M), averaged 13.21 million — which would rank as the largest non-football sports audience since the wave of cancellations and postponements that altered the industry last March. Viewership fell 3% from the comparable day three window in 2019 (13.66M) and a steeper 24% from the comparable Sunday window that year (17.32M).
Earlier in the day, Baylor-Wisconsin averaged a 4.5 (-19%) and 7.74 million (-14%) and Loyola (Chicago)-Illinois pulled a 3.75 (+7%) and 6.16 million (+17%) — ranking second and third, respectively, for the tournament.
Notably, this year’s tournament includes the most-watched weekday afternoon game in at least nine years — Oral Roberts’ Friday afternoon upset of Ohio State pulled a 2.7 and 4.41 million on CBS. It was the highest rated and second-most watched game of the entire first round, trailing only Wisconsin-UNC in the latter category (2.6, 4.44M). Oral Roberts’ Sunday upset of Florida was not nearly as big a draw on TruTV, with a 0.95 and 1.72 million.
The schedule shift has been a major factor in whether games have increased or declined versus 2019. Seven of the eight Saturday afternoon games increased when compared to Friday games in 2019. Five of the six Monday games for which figures are available declined substantially from Sunday games in 2019.
Ratings, viewership, for each game of NCAA Tournament thus far
All comparisons are to the comparable day of the 2019 tournament (e.g., Friday to Thursday, Saturday to Friday, Sunday to Saturday and Monday to Sunday); Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 3.23.
| DATE | GAME | NET | RTG | VWRS | RTG +/- | VWR +/- |
| Thu 3/18 | UCLA – MSU | TBS | 1.78 | 3.154M | +60% | +80% |
| Thu 3/18 | Drake – Wichita State | TBS | 1.20 | 2.007M | +24% | +31% |
| Thu 3/18 | Norfolk State – App State | TruTV | 0.83 | 1.473M | +12% | +31% |
| Thu 3/18 | Texas Southern – Mt. St. Mary’s | TruTV | 0.69 | 1.131M | +15% | +17% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (FIRST FOUR) | 4.50 | 7.765M | +32% | +44% | ||
| Fri 3/19 | VT – UF | CBS | 2.16 | 3.392M | -11% | -1% |
| Fri 3/19 | Colgate – Arkansas | TruTV | 0.55 | 878K | +12% | +27% |
| Fri 3/19 | Illinois – Drexel | TBS | 0.52 | 791K | -5% | +1% |
| Fri 3/19 | Utah State – Texas Tech | TNT | 0.46 | 729K | -29% | -17% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 1, WINDOW 1) | 3.69 | 5.790M | -10% | +0% | ||
| Fri 3/19 | Oral Roberts – Ohio State | CBS | 2.68 | 4.410M | +13% | +30% |
| Fri 3/19 | Loyola (IL) – Georgia Tech | TBS | 0.98 | 1.703M | -37% | -29% |
| Fri 3/19 | Oregon State – Tennessee | TNT | 0.88 | 1.470M | +16% | +29% |
| Fri 3/19 | Baylor – Hartford | TruTV | 0.38 | 648K | -42% | -33% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 1, WINDOW 2) | 4.92 | 8.231M | -8% | +4% | ||
| Fri 3/19 | Wisconsin – UNC | CBS | 2.57 | 4.439M | +5% | +18% |
| Fri 3/19 | Oklahoma State – Liberty | TBS | 1.44 | 2.677M | -19% | -8% |
| Fri 3/19 | North Texas – Purdue | TNT | 1.23 | 2.347M | -35% | -25% |
| Fri 3/19 | Houston – Cleveland State | TruTV | 0.22 | 421K | -50% | -40% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 1, WINDOW 3) | 5.46 | 9.884M | -16% | -6% | ||
| Fri 3/19 | Syracuse – SDSU | CBS | 1.95 | 3.454M | -22% | -13% |
| Fri 3/19 | Rutgers – Clemson | TBS | 1.09 | 1.983M | +25% | +34% |
| Fri 3/19 | Villanova – Winthrop | TNT | 1.07 | 1.968M | -14% | +1% |
| Fri 3/19 | WVU – Morehead State | TruTV | 0.56 | 1.006M | -54% | -50% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 1, WINDOW 4) | 4.67 | 8.411M | -20% | -11% | ||
| Sat 3/20 | Colorado – Georgetown | CBS | 2.06 | 3.272M | -13% | -3% |
| Sat 3/20 | Kansas – E. Washington | TBS | 1.23 | 2.114M | +73% | +102% |
| Sat 3/20 | FSU – UNC-Greensboro | TruTV | 0.66 | 1.081M | +53% | +81% |
| Sat 3/20 | LSU – St. Bonaventure | TNT | 0.58 | 971K | +41% | +62% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 2, WINDOW 1) | 4.53 | 7.438M | +15% | +32% | ||
| Sat 3/20 | Michigan – Tx. Southern | CBS | 2.05 | 3.448M | -2% | +16% |
| Sat 3/20 | Alabama – Iona | TBS | 1.71 | 2.963M | -1% | +8% |
| Sat 3/20 | USC – Drake | TNT | 1.04 | 1.705M | +39% | +52% |
| Sat 3/20 | Creighton – UCSB | TruTV | 0.82 | 1.410M | +4% | +21% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 2, WINDOW 2) | 5.62 | 9.526M | +5% | +19% | ||
| Sat 3/20 | Maryland – UConn | CBS | 1.94 | 3.399M | -49% | -45% |
| Sat 3/20 | Iowa – Grand Canyon | TBS | 1.68 | 3.167M | +130% | +167% |
| Sat 3/20 | Oklahoma – Missouri | TNT | 1.22 | 2.255M | +11% | +26% |
| Sat 3/20 | Ohio – UVA | TruTV | 0.89 | 1.770M | +2% | +15% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 2, WINDOW 3) | 5.73 | 10.591M | -12% | -1% | ||
| Sat 3/20 | UCLA – BYU | CBS | 2.23 | 4.056M | +6% | +21% |
| Sat 3/20 | Gonzaga – Norfolk State | TBS | 1.19 | 2.247M | -23% | -14% |
| Sat 3/20 | Abilene Christian – Texas | TruTV | 0.92 | 1.753M | +67% | +97% |
| Sat 3/20 | Abilene Christian – Texas | TNT | 0.65 | 1.114M | -63% | -63% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 2, WINDOW 4) | 4.99 | 9.170M | -16% | -7% | ||
| Sun 3/21 | Loyola (IL) – Illinois | CBS | 3.75 | 6.161M | +7% | +17% |
| Sun 3/21 | Baylor – Wisconsin | CBS | 4.52 | 7.742M | -19% | -14% |
| Sun 3/21 | Syracuse – WVU | CBS | 4.52 | 7.856M | -16% | -12% |
| Sun 3/21 | Houston – Rutgers | TBS | 1.51 | 2.786M | +4% | +11% |
| Sun 3/21 | Arkansas – Texas Tech | TNT | 1.42 | 2.565M | +1% | +13% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 3, WINDOW 3) | 7.45 | 13.207M | -9% | -3% | ||
| Sun 3/21 | Oregon State – OK St | TBS | 2.04 | 3.590M | -25% | -22% |
| Sun 3/21 | Oral Roberts – Florida | TruTV* | 0.95 | 1.716M | -75% | -74% |
| Sun 3/21 | Villanova – North Texas | TNT | 0.92 | 1.688M | -31% | -26% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 3, WINDOW 4) | 3.91 | 6.994M | -51% | -48% | ||
| Mon 3/22 | Oregon – Iowa | CBS | still to come | |||
| Mon 3/22 | Gonzaga – Oklahoma | CBS | still to come | |||
| Mon 3/22 | Michigan – LSU | CBS | n.a. | 5.851M | n.a. | -55% |
| Mon 3/22 | UCLA – Abilene Christian | TBS | n.a. | 2.064M | n.a. | -25% |
| Mon 3/22 | Creighton – Ohio | TNT | n.a. | 1.483M | n.a. | -13% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 4, WINDOW 3) | n.a. | 9.398M | n.a. | -46% | ||
| Mon 3/22 | USC – Kansas | CBS* | n.a. | 4.219M | n.a. | +127% |
| Mon 3/22 | FSU – Colorado | TBS | n.a. | 1.748M | n.a. | -35% |
| Mon 3/22 | Alabama – Maryland | TNT | n.a. | 1.976M | n.a. | -45% |
| COMBINED AVERAGE (DAY 4, WINDOW 4) | n.a. | 7.943M | n.a. | -2% | ||
* Oral Roberts-Florida on TruTV Sunday is compared to a Saturday game on CBS in 2019; USC-Kansas on CBS Monday is compared to a Sunday game on TruTV in 2019.
[Thurs-Sun. avg. from The Hollywood Reporter 3.23]
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