Ratings for the men’s NCAA basketball tournament on CBS slipped to their lowest levels in years, but for the women’s tourney it was a very different story.
Buoyed by four breakout stars, the return of a historic power to the Final Four, and a favorable schedule, women’s March Madness scored all-time-best numbers for ESPN and ESPN2.
For the entire three-week tournament, ESPN averaged 1.4 million households, up 45 percent from 965,000 last year, and ESPN2 averaged 560,000 households, up 31 percent from 427,000 last year.
The three Final Four games, including the semifinals on Sunday, April 6, and the final on Tuesday, April 8, averaged 2.5 million households, 25 percent better than last year, equaling the most-watched Final Four since 2004.
The final game between Tennessee and Stanford averaged 2.9 million households, up 29 percent from last year.
There were several reasons behind the uptick in ratings, and one certainly was the teams participating in the Final Four, which also included UConn and LSU. Between them, the four squads have more than two dozen total Final Four appearances, including at least five apiece since 1990.
They also have some of the most loyal fans in women’s basketball because of their storied success. UConn and Tennessee, which won its second straight title, have dominated the game for the last decade and a half, and LSU was making its fifth straight Final Four appearance.
Stanford, though, may have been the biggest surprise and perhaps the wild card draw in the final. Though the Cardinal played in six Final Fours during an eight-year span in the ‘90s, the team hadn’t made it back since 1997.
The team’s return, under former Olympic coach Tara Vanderveer, also meant that the top four players in women’s college basketball all played in the Final Four. Stanford’s Candice Wiggins scored 151 points in six games, fourth-most in tourney history, and LSU’s Sylvia Fowles had 20 rebounds in a semifinal loss to the Vols.
Tennessee’s Candace Parker led her squad to another title despite separating her shoulder, and UConn’s Maya Moore became just the second freshman ever to make the Associated Press All-American squad.
Three of those players were selected in the WNBA draft the day after the final. Instead of waiting weeks or months like the men do to hold the draft, when the tourney is a distant memory, the WNBA rescheduled it two years ago to take advantage of the tourney hype.
With such a heralded senior class, this may have been the first time the draft actually helped boost the final. Parker, Fowles and Wiggins were the top three picks.
***
Meanwhile, in other cable ratings for the week ended April 13:
Top five networks in primetime (18-49s): Spike TV, USA, TBS, TNT, ESPN.
Top five networks in primetime (total viewers): USA, Spike TV, TNT, ESPN, Lifetime.
Top movie (18-49s): Spike’s “Star Wars-Episode VI: Return of the Jedi” (Sunday, 8:01 p.m.) 2.41 million
Top sporting event (total viewers): ESPN’s “Major League Baseball: Yankees vs. Red Sox” (Sunday, 8 p.m.) 3.90 million
Shows making the top 10 among 18-34s, 18-49s and 25-54s: USA’s “WWE Entertainment” (Monday 10 p.m.); VH1’s “Rock of Love 2” (Sunday 9 p.m.); Comedy Central’s “South Park” (Wednesday 10 p.m.)
Show on the rise: Lifetime’s “The Memory Keeper’s Daughter,” Saturday 9 p.m. Lifetime’s adaptation of the popular Kim Edwards novel attracted 5.8 million total viewers, making it the most-watched movie so far this year on ad-supported cable and the most-watched on Lifetime since 1995. The movie drew 4.5 million women age 18 and over.
Show on the decline: FX’s “Dirt,” Sunday 10 p.m. The magazine drama’s audience fell by 18 percent week-to-week, from 1.3 million total viewers to 1.06 million.
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Ranked on Household Rating
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank |
Primetime |
Total Day |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
1941
|
NICK
|
1677
|
|
2
|
LIF
|
1526
|
NAN
*
|
1273
|
|
3
|
TNT
|
1522
|
TNT
|
1038
|
|
4
|
SPK
|
1521
|
USA
|
1025
|
|
5
|
ESPN
|
1500
|
LIF
|
827
|
|
6
|
TBSC
|
1408
|
ADSM*
|
825
|
|
7
|
NAN
|
1330
|
TOON
|
788
|
|
8
|
FOXN
|
1221
|
TBSC
|
782
|
|
9
|
HGTV
|
942
|
ESPN
|
727
|
|
10
|
AEN
|
924
|
FOXN
|
717
|
|
11
|
DISC
|
913
|
SPK
|
700
|
|
12
|
HALL
|
911
|
DISC
|
626
|
|
13
|
TOON
|
898
|
AEN
|
595
|
|
14
|
VH1
|
877
|
HALL
|
592
|
|
15
|
TRU
|
848
|
TRU
|
587
|
|
16
|
CMDY
|
828
|
HIST
|
558
|
|
17
|
HIST
|
818
|
HGTV
|
551
|
|
18
|
AMC
|
811
|
FX
|
506
|
|
19
|
FX
|
807
|
FAM
|
499
|
|
20
|
SCIF
|
774
|
CMDY
|
485
|
|
21
|
FAM
|
765
|
FOOD
|
478
|
|
22
|
TLC
|
737
|
MTV
|
468
|
|
23
|
CNN
|
735
|
AMC
|
453
|
|
24
|
FOOD
|
686
|
CNN
|
431
|
|
25
|
MTV
|
673
|
TVLD
|
420
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank
|
Program |
Net
|
(000) |
|
1
|
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
|
LIF
|
4546
|
|
2
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
4108
|
|
3
|
Rock Of Love 2
|
VH1
|
3780
|
|
4
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
3347
|
|
5
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
3345
|
|
6
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
3204
|
|
7
|
Back At The Barnyard
|
NICK
|
3171
|
|
8
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
3085
|
|
9
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
3079
|
|
10
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
3032
|
|
11
|
Masters Golf Tournament
|
ESPN
|
3014
|
|
12
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2997
|
|
13
|
Yankees/Red Sox
|
ESPN
|
2956
|
|
14
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2943
|
|
15
|
Back At The Barnyard
|
NICK
|
2900
|
|
16
|
Stanford/Tennessee
|
ESPN
|
2871
|
|
17
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2862
|
|
18
|
Star Wars: Episode VI 1983
|
SPK
|
2726
|
|
19
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2720
|
|
20
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2706
|
|
21
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2647
|
|
22
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2623
|
|
23
|
The Hills
|
MTV
|
2617
|
|
24
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2594
|
|
25
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2544
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
TBSC
|
661
|
ADSM*
|
411
|
|
2
|
SPK
|
544
|
NAN
*
|
375
|
|
3
|
USA
|
506
|
NICK
|
369
|
|
4
|
VH1
|
493
|
TBSC
|
322
|
|
5
|
CMDY
|
460
|
TNT
|
296
|
|
6
|
ESPN
|
440
|
CMDY
|
254
|
|
7
|
MTV
|
427
|
USA
|
248
|
|
8
|
TNT
|
391
|
DISC
|
246
|
|
9
|
FX
|
355
|
ESPN
|
245
|
|
10
|
DISC
|
343
|
MTV
|
245
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Rock Of Love 2
|
VH1
|
2597
|
|
2
|
The Hills
|
MTV
|
2469
|
|
3
|
The Hills
|
MTV
|
2349
|
|
4
|
South
Park
|
CMDY
|
2046
|
|
5
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1337
|
|
6
|
Family Guy
|
TBSC
|
1256
|
|
7
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
1203
|
|
8
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1179
|
|
9
|
Family Guy
|
TBSC
|
1152
|
|
10
|
Family Guy
|
TBSC
|
1139
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
SPK
|
1198
|
NAN
*
|
649
|
|
2
|
USA
|
1155
|
TNT
|
641
|
|
3
|
TBSC
|
1085
|
NICK
|
587
|
|
4
|
TNT
|
936
|
USA
|
584
|
|
5
|
ESPN
|
907
|
TBSC
|
545
|
|
6
|
LIF
|
746
|
ADSM*
|
519
|
|
7
|
VH1
|
733
|
SPK
|
504
|
|
8
|
DISC
|
703
|
DISC
|
472
|
|
9
|
CMDY
|
689
|
ESPN
|
460
|
|
10
|
FX
|
622
|
LIF
|
440
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Rock Of Love 2
|
VH1
|
3869
|
|
2
|
The Hills
|
MTV
|
2861
|
|
3
|
The Hills
|
MTV
|
2730
|
|
4
|
South
Park
|
CMDY
|
2678
|
|
5
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2418
|
|
6
|
Star Wars: Episode VI 1983
|
SPK
|
2409
|
|
7
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2047
|
|
8
|
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
|
LIF
|
2033
|
|
9
|
Star Wars: Episode V 1980
|
SPK
|
1940
|
|
10
|
Yankees/Red Sox
|
ESPN
|
1878
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending April 13 |
|
|
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Rank
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
1184
|
TNT
|
649
|
|
2
|
SPK
|
1169
|
USA
|
614
|
|
3
|
TNT
|
1002
|
NAN
*
|
530
|
|
4
|
TBSC
|
933
|
SPK
|
491
|
|
5
|
ESPN
|
908
|
NICK
|
479
|
|
6
|
LIF
|
803
|
LIF
|
466
|
|
7
|
DISC
|
692
|
TBSC
|
466
|
|
8
|
AEN
|
622
|
DISC
|
448
|
|
9
|
SCIF
|
584
|
ESPN
|
430
|
|
10
|
FX
|
548
|
TRU
|
370
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending April 13 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Rock Of Love 2
|
VH1
|
2901
|
|
2
|
Star Wars: Episode VI 1983
|
SPK
|
2405
|
|
3
|
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
|
LIF
|
2363
|
|
4
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2329
|
|
5
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2004
|
|
6
|
Star Wars: Episode V 1980
|
SPK
|
1934
|
|
7
|
Yankees/Red Sox
|
ESPN
|
1893
|
|
8
|
Ghost Hunters
|
SCIF
|
1772
|
|
9
|
House Of Payne
|
TBSC
|
1667
|
|
10
|
South
Park
|
CMDY
|
1639
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
