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Swish: NBA playoffs
off to a hefty start


Will the Lakers duke it out with the Celtics?

Apr 23, 2008
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This could finally be a good year for the NBA finals on ABC, following last year’s record low.

The playoffs are off to a strong start, thanks to several intriguing storylines, and already people are buzzing about a potential finals matchup between 1980s rivals the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, who hold the top seeds in their respective conferences.

Two games on ABC Saturday and Sunday climbed from an average 3.4 household rating last year to a 3.8 this year, according to overnight ratings, a jump of 12 percent.

On ESPN, three first-round games rose more than 40 percent over the same window last year, all scoring metered-market household ratings of at least a 2.1.

TNT's three games were flat to last year averaging 2.7 million total viewers, though their Celtics-Atlanta Hawks contest was up 13 percent over the equivalent game last season.

Not surprisingly, some of those gains built on the big stories in the league this year, including Shaquille O’Neal’s trade to the Phoenix Suns and MVP candidate LeBron James’ continuing development.

O’Neal’s Suns are facing the San Antonio Spurs in the first round, continuing a fierce rivalry that has built between the teams over the past three seasons, though they usually meet later in the Western Conference playoffs.

Saturday’s Game 1 of that series averaged a 3.7 rating on ABC, up 32 percent over last year’s 2.8 for the equivalent Miami Heat-Chicago Bulls game, when O’Neal played for the Heat.

Another budding rivalry between the Washington Wizards and James’ Cleveland Cavaliers, which has generated loads of trash-talking from Wizard Gilbert Arenas, averaged a 2.1. That was up 50 percent over the same window last year, a game between the New Jersey Nets and Toronto Raptors that averaged a 1.4.

But the most important ratings improvement could be yet to come. Sports writers have been gleefully anticipating a finals rematch between the Lakers and Celtics, two franchises that have been in disarray in recent years following their 1980s domination.

Boston set a record for best single-season turnaround, going from the worst record in the Eastern Conference to the best, with the acquisition of players like Kevin Garnett. Out West, the Lakers finally found a supporting cast that could keep up with star Kobe Bryant, leading them to first in the most balanced conference.

The Lakers and Celtics faced off three times in a four-year span in the NBA finals during the early 1980s, with the Lakers winning two titles and Boston one. The teams combined for eight of the 10 titles during the 1980s, but the Celtics haven’t been back to the finals since 1987. Bryant and O’Neal’s Lakers won three straight titles from 2000 to 2002.

Sports pages across the country have predicted a huge ratings up tick if these two squads make it to the final, which would feature teams from the No. 2 and No. 7 markets in the country.

The playoffs continue on ABC, ESPN and TNT through May. The finals will start on June 5 on ABC. 

***

Meanwhile, in broadcast ratings for the week ended April 20:
 
Among adults 18-49, Fox was first with a 3.2 rating and a 9 share, followed by NBC at 2.4/7, ABC and CBS at 2.3/7, Univision at 1.5/4, CW at 0.9/3, Telemundo at 0.5/1, MyNetworkTV at 0.4/1, TeleFutura at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 18-34, Fox was first with a 2.7 rating and a 9 share, followed by Univision at 1.8/5, ABC and NBC at 1.7/5, CBS at 1.5/5, CW at 1.0/3, Telemundo at 0.5/2, TeleFutura and MyNetworkTV at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 25-54, Fox was first with a 3.6 rating and a 9 share, followed by CBS at 3.0/8, ABC at 2.9/8, NBC at 2.8/7, Univision at 1.4/4, CW at 0.9/2, Telemundo at 0.5/1, MyNetworkTV at 0.4/1, TeleFutura at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (18-49s): Tie-1. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” “American Idol - Tuesday” 8.8; 3. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 5.5; 4. CBS’s “Two and a Half Men” 5.3; 5. NBC’s “The Office” 5.0.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (total viewers): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 23.65 million; 2. Fox’s “American Idol – Wednesday” 23.34 million; 3. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 17.20 million; 4. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 15.75 million; 5. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 15.42 million.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (households, week ended April 6): Fox’s “American Idol – Tuesday” 15.3; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 15.2; Tie-3. CBS’s “CSI” and ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 13.3; 5. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 11.3.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (18-49s, week ended April 6): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 10.2; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 9.8; 3. CBS’s “CSI” 6.7; 4. Fox’s “Hell’s Kitchen” 6.0; 5. CBS’s “Two and a Half Men” 5.9.
 
Show on the rise: “CSI: NY,” CBS, Wednesday 10 p.m. The third of the crime drama franchise posted a 3.9 rating among viewers 18-49 last week, up 22 percent from the previous week’s 3.2.
 
Show on the decline: “Dancing with the Stars,” ABC, Monday 8 p.m. “Dancing” faced all original programming and slipped 16 percent week-to-week among 18-49s, from a 4.9 rating to a 4.1.

WEEKLY PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 20

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

5.6

6280

9

3.0

8540

8

2.3

3030

7

FOX

5.3

5970

9

3.1

8750

8

3.2

4190

9

ABC

5.2

5890

9

2.8

7910

7

2.3

3010

7

NBC

4.8

5380

8

2.6

7320

7

2.4

3080

7

UNI

1.8

2030

3

1.2

3480

3

1.5

1950

4

CW

1.5

1690

2

0.8

2290

2

0.9

1210

3

MNT

0.7

740

1

0.4

1010

1

0.4

500

1

TEL

0.6

710

1

0.4

1160

1

0.5

610

1

TF

0.3

330

0

0.2

540

1

0.3

360

1

ION

0.3

300

0

0.1

400

0

0.1

140

0

AZA

0.1

100

0

0.1

190

0

0.1

120

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

 

SEASON-TO-DATE PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 20

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

6.7

7510

11

3.7

10460

9

3.0

3920

8

FOX

6.7

7500

11

3.9

11300

10

4.3

5600

11

ABC

5.9

6660

10

3.2

9140

8

3.0

3920

8

NBC

5.3

5990

9

2.9

8330

7

2.9

3810

8

UNI

1.8

2040

3

1.2

3540

3

1.5

1990

4

CW

1.7

1880

3

0.9

2570

2

1.0

1360

3

MNT

0.8

850

1

0.4

1120

1

0.4

550

1

TEL

0.6

660

1

0.4

1050

1

0.4

580

1

ION

0.4

420

1

0.2

540

0

0.1

160

0

TF

0.4

400

1

0.2

660

1

0.3

420

1

AZA

0.1

100

0

0.1

160

0

0.1

100

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 20

#

PROGRAMS

Net

HOUSEHOLDS

PERSONS 2+

Rtg%

Shr

(000)

#

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

13.9

22

15626

1

8.3

23646

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

13.4

21

15143

2

8.2

23339

3

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

11.3

17

12762

3

6.0

17198

4

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

10.1

15

11342

5

5.4

15421

4

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

10.1

16

11438

4

5.5

15746

6

NCIS

CBS

9.4

15

10629

6

5.3

15128

7

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

8.8

14

9894

9

4.6

13268

8

CSI: NY

CBS

8.6

14

9694

8

4.7

13429

9

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

8.5

13

9580

7

4.9

13937

10

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

8.2

13

9256

10

4.5

12978

11

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

7.3

12

8270

14

3.7

10628

11

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

7.3

12

8181

11

4.2

12014

13

60 MINUTES

CBS

7.1

13

8016

13

3.8

10749

13

ABC NEWS: DEM PRES DEBATE(S)

ABC

7.1

11

8053

14

3.7

10693

13

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

7.1

12

7968

19

3.5

10080

16

BIGGEST LOSER 5

NBC

6.9

11

7732

12

4.0

11391

16

CSI

CBS

6.9

11

7834

14

3.7

10476

18

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

6.6

10

7457

18

3.6

10398

19

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

6.4

10

7275

25

3.3

9474

19

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

6.4

11

7182

26

3.2

9235

21

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

6.3

9

7111

14

3.7

10560

21

OPRAH'S BIG GIVE

ABC

6.3

10

7108

19

3.5

10092

23

MEDIUM

NBC

6.2

10

6978

21

3.4

9758

24

DEAL OR NO DEAL-MON

NBC

6.1

9

6891

21

3.4

9719

25

DEAL OR NO DEAL-WED

NBC

6.0

10

6800

21

3.4

9739

Source: Nielsen Media Research

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Adults 18-49
Week Ending April 20

Rank

Program

Net

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

8.8

11509

1

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

8.8

11498

3

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

5.5

7259

4

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

5.3

6988

5

OFFICE

NBC

5.0

6488

6

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

4.7

6190

6

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

4.7

6173

8

BIGGEST LOSER 5

NBC

4.4

5827

9

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

4.1

5339

9

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

4.1

5372

11

CSI: NY

CBS

3.9

5051

11

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

3.9

5132

13

SCRUBS

NBC

3.7

4792

14

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

3.6

4673

15

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

3.5

4560

16

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

3.4

4498

16

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER

CBS

3.4

4504

18

MEDIUM

NBC

3.2

4219

18

OPRAH'S BIG GIVE

ABC

3.2

4239

20

DON'T FORGET THE LYRICS

FOX

3.1

4066

20

E.R.

NBC

3.1

4052

20

NCIS

CBS

3.1

4094

23

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

3.0

3871

23

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

3.0

3876

25

BIG BANG THEORY, THE

CBS

2.9

3799

25

BONES-MON 8P

FOX

2.9

3776

25

DEAL OR NO DEAL-MON

NBC

2.9

3752

Source: Nielsen Media Research

  

SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION (WEEKLY COLLAPSED)
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 20

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+ (000)

1

AL DIABLO CON GUAPOS M-F

UNI

20.9

4661

2

PASION M-F

UNI

20.1

4275

3

CRISTINA MON

UNI

17.5

3484

4

DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA WE

UNI

17.0

3181

5

NUESTRA BELLEZA FRI

UNI

15.9

3173

6

AMAS CASA DESESPERADS THU

UNI

14.3

2889

7

AQUI Y AHORA TUE

UNI

14.2

2954

8

YO AMO JUAN QUERENDON M-F

UNI

13.7

2705

9

HORA PICO SUN

UNI

11.5

2237

10

SABADO GIGANTE SAT

UNI

10.8

1988

11

NOCHE DE ESTRELLAS SUN

UNI

10.2

2004

12

PANTERA SUN

UNI

8.2

1745

12

VICTORIA M-F

TEL

8.2

1588

14

PECADOS AJENOS M-F

TEL

6.3

1235

15

CINE MILLONARIO

TEL

5.0

1157

16

TRAICION M-F

TEL

4.8

832

17

JUNTO AL TRI 4/16(S)-04/16/2008

TEL

4.7

889

18

CINE DE IMPACTO

TEL

4.4

1025

19

CINE DE LAS ESTREL SUN 2

TF

4.3

844

20

RUMBO PREGAME 4/16(S)-04/16/2008

TEL

4.1

783

21

12 CORAZONES M-F

TEL

3.9

781

21

CINE EN CASA SAT

TEL

3.9

916

23

CINE EN CASA

TEL

3.5

782

24

OBJETIVO FAMA SUN

TF

2.8

595

24

CINE DE LAS ESTRELLAS M-THU

TF

2.8

569

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

HISPANIC ENGLISH-LANGUAGE VIEWING
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 20

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

5.8

1076

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY