TV Viewership 2024 Regular Season

[jumpstart]

@awhom111 reports

2/8 Notre Dame-Louisville ESPN 343,000 .08
2/8 Penn State-Iowa BTN 657,000 .16

2/10 Villanova-Marquette FOX 381,000
2/11 Louisville-Syracuse CW 181,000
2/11 Iowa-Nebraska FOX 1,772,000
2/11 UConn-South Carolina ESPN 1,053,000
2/11 Alabama-LSU ESPN2 367,000

ESPN is a pay channel while FOX is not. That is a huge difference when factoring in viewership.

 

[darrell]

 

[visitingcock]

a few more from @awhom111 to catch up previously skipped in February plus early March:

2/20 Wisconsin-Minnesota BTN 81,000
2/20 Northwestern-Nebraska BTN 98,000
2/21 Xavier-Butler FS2 13,000
2/22 UALR-Southeast Missouri State ESPNU 7,000
2/24 Middle Tennessee State-Western Kentucky ESPNU 8,000
2/24 UNLV-Nevada FS1 68,000
2/25 Purdue-Wisconsin BTN 88,000
2/27 Indiana-Northwestern BTN 49,000
2/27 St. John's-Marquette FS1 38,000
2/28 Portland-Gonzaga ESPNU 27,000
2/29 Wisconsin-Maryland BTN 14,000
2/29 Virginia Tech-Notre Dame ESPN 430,000 .08
2/29 LSU-Georgia ESPN2 202,000 .04
2/29 Illinois-Michigan State BTN 25,000
3/3 Gameday ESPN 522,000
3/3 Tennessee-South Carolina ESPN 679,000
3/3 Oklahoma State-Baylor ESPN2 62,000
3/3 College Hoops Tipoff FOX 720,000
3/3 Ohio State-Iowa FOX 3,388,000
3/3 Louisville-Notre Dame ESPN 356,000
3/3 Michigan State-Wisconsin BTN 31,000
3/3 Creighton-Seton Hall FS1 73,000
3/3 Duke-UNC ESPN 371,000
3/3 Nebraska-Illinois BTN 94,000
3/3 DePaul-Villanova FS1 54,000
3/3 Purdue-Michigan FS1 107,000

 

[darrell]

 

[cancontent]

The BIG10's new deal continues to pay off for both the league and the networks involved. Between football, MBB and WBB this year, they've hit rating numbers I don't think anyone expected in year 1 of the deal.

 

[BigTenGuy]

Perhaps a more stunning number is 1,040,000 for Iowa-Penn State on Friday night in the Big Ten tourney on Big Ten Network.

Friday (3/8) sports ratings: NBA, Clark, top night

An NBA doubleheader topped the sports viewership charts for Friday, March 8, while Caitlin Clark-led Iowa set yet another viewership record.

www.sportsmediawatch.com

 

[visitingcock]

I’ll post a more complete list later today including more great Big Ten tournament numbers on BTN. Here’s the millionaire club of the past week or so:

03/03/24. tOSU vs Iowa FOX 3.38 mil
03/08/24 PSU vs Iowa BTN 1.04 mil
03/10/24 NeB vs Iowa CBS 3.02 mil

03/10/24 LSU vs. SCar ESPN 1.96 mil
03/10/24 Southern Cal v Stanford ESPN 1.44 mil

 

[BigTenGuy]

. . . Here’s the millionaire club of the past week or so:

One more.

03/09/24 Michigan vs Iowa BTN 1,075,000

 

[visitingcock]

I’ll post a more complete list later today including more great Big Ten tournament numbers on BTN. Here’s the millionaire club of the past week or so:

03/03/24. tOSU vs Iowa FOX 3.38 mil
03/08/24 PSU vs Iowa BTN 1.04 mil
03/10/24 NeB vs Iowa CBS 3.02 mil

03/10/24 LSU vs. SCar ESPN 1.96 mil
03/10/24 Southern Cal v Stanford ESPN 1.44 mil

One more.

03/09/24 Michigan vs Iowa BTN 1,075,000

Thanks!

 

[visitingcock]

From @whom111

3/8 Maryland-Ohio State BTN 196,000 .03
3/8 Nebraska-Michigan State BTN 195,000 .03
3/8 Penn State-Iowa BTN 1,040,000 .22.
3/8 Michigan-Indiana BTN 454,000 .11

Conference Tournaments

3/9 Providence-UConn FS1 249,000
3/9 Maryland-Nebraska BTN 357,000
3/9 Michigan-Iowa BTN 1,075,000
3/9 Tennessee-South Carolina ESPNU 221,000
3/9 Ole Miss-LSU ESPNU 306,000
3/10 Gameday ESPN 383,000
3/10 Nebraska-Iowa CBS 3,021,000
3/10 Notre Dame-North Carolina State ESPN 679,000
3/10 Marquette-UConn FS1 262,000
3/10 LSU-South Carolina ESPN 1,960,000
3/10 USC-Stanford ESPN 1,442,000
3/10 Georgetown-Creighton FS1 194,000

The BTN killed it recently. I have no doubt it has set records for viewers of a conference network wbb broadcast

 

[CL82]

From @whom111

3/8 Maryland-Ohio State BTN 196,000 .03
3/8 Nebraska-Michigan State BTN 195,000 .03
3/8 Penn State-Iowa BTN 1,040,000 .22.
3/8 Michigan-Indiana BTN 454,000 .11

Conference Tournaments

3/9 Providence-UConn FS1 249,000
3/9 Maryland-Nebraska BTN 357,000
3/9 Michigan-Iowa BTN 1,075,000
3/9 Tennessee-South Carolina ESPNU 221,000
3/9 Ole Miss-LSU ESPNU 306,000
3/10 Gameday ESPN 383,000
3/10 Nebraska-Iowa CBS 3,021,000
3/10 Notre Dame-North Carolina State ESPN 679,000
3/10 Marquette-UConn FS1 262,000
3/10 LSU-South Carolina ESPN 1,960,000
3/10 USC-Stanford ESPN 1,442,000
3/10 Georgetown-Creighton FS1 194,000

The BTN killed it recently. I have no doubt it has set records for viewers of a conference network wbb broadcast

Clark and Iowa getting the attention they do is impressive. There has been a ton of hype over Clark's setting scoring records, but it has brought eyeballs to the game broadcast. That's a really good thing for women's college basketball.

As always, I appreciate the time that goes into these posts. It's interesting Info.

 

[jumpstart]

One more.

03/09/24 Michigan vs Iowa BTN 1,075,000

That being on BTN shows how the numbers are skewed by the "pay" channels vs regular television. You get the 3 Mil for FOX and CBS but you get less with ESPN and other pay sites.

 

[cancontent]

That being on BTN shows how the numbers are skewed by the "pay" channels vs regular television. You get the 3 Mil for FOX and CBS but you get less with ESPN and other pay sites.

True, but how often do we see 1M for anything on BTN for women's basketball? Think it's a first from what I've noticed.

 

[ISUnorth]

That being on BTN shows how the numbers are skewed by the "pay" channels vs regular television. You get the 3 Mil for FOX and CBS but you get less with ESPN and other pay sites.

Even so, HUGE increases over last years champ games. Big Ten 4X, SEC 2X, and Pac-12 5X over last years games. Table was for the Sunday games. ISU/Texas in Big 12 champ game drew way less than these at 336,000.

Good viewing and marquee type draws. Got the Clark factor for Big Ten, the SEC cage match of #1 vs last #1, JuJu vs Brink etc.

Another three million for Clark, Iowa, nearly matching UNC-Duke

Caitlin Clark and Iowa topped three million viewers for a second-straight week and came close to matching UNC-Duke the prior night.

www.sportsmediawatch.com

 

[ISUnorth]

True, but how often do we see 1M for anything on BTN for women's basketball? Think it's a first from what I've noticed.

They averaged 300,000 for the tournament and 100,000 over regular season even while farming out some of the bigger draw telecasts to Peacock.

 

[ConwayGmck]

From @whom111

3/8 Maryland-Ohio State BTN 196,000 .03
3/8 Nebraska-Michigan State BTN 195,000 .03
3/8 Penn State-Iowa BTN 1,040,000 .22.
3/8 Michigan-Indiana BTN 454,000 .11

Conference Tournaments

3/9 Providence-UConn FS1 249,000
3/9 Maryland-Nebraska BTN 357,000
3/9 Michigan-Iowa BTN 1,075,000
3/9 Tennessee-South Carolina ESPNU 221,000
3/9 Ole Miss-LSU ESPNU 306,000
3/10 Gameday ESPN 383,000
3/10 Nebraska-Iowa CBS 3,021,000
3/10 Notre Dame-North Carolina State ESPN 679,000
3/10 Marquette-UConn FS1 262,000
3/10 LSU-South Carolina ESPN 1,960,000
3/10 USC-Stanford ESPN 1,442,000
3/10 Georgetown-Creighton FS1 194,000

The BTN killed it recently. I have no doubt it has set records for viewers of a conference network wbb broadcast

ESPNU looking pretty dowdy lately. No one saw that great finish to the game except on replays elsewhere. The reg. season games on ESPN proper drew 700K and 680K respectively, three times what the ESPNU channel brought.


How come the BTN is listed here, but not the SECN, ACCN, or PAC12N???

 

[visitingcock]

Before the NCAA tournament last year, there were only two games with over a million viewers.

• LSU at Scar 1.466 mil (ESPN)
• SCar at UConn 1.087 mil (FOX)

This year, there have been thirteen games with over a million viewers. Two were the South Carolina vs LSU. One was SCar vs. UConn. One was Southern Cal vs. Stanford (the last PAC game). One (in a mild surprise) was Tennessee vs Indiana.

Eight of the million+ viewers were captured by Iowa including two games of over 3 million viewers!

Additionally, Iowa sold out all their home games and many of their road games. The Big Ten tournament sold out.

Thank you for what you have done for wbb Caitlin. You too Lisa! Networks and advertisers are now looking at wbb much differently. As always, thank you @awhom111.

Talk about this for a few more days. I'm going to open a new thread when we get our first tournament returns to keep all that info together and separate I expect a bunch of million view games - not just Iowa. When I open that thread, @HuskyNan may close this one to avoid board clutter.

It's been a great season!

 

[visitingcock]

ESPNU looking pretty dowdy lately. No one saw that great finish to the game except on replays elsewhere. The reg. season games on ESPN proper drew 700K and 680K respectively, three times what the ESPNU channel brought.


How come the BTN is listed here, but not the SECN, ACCN, or PAC12N???

Because few of them brought in sufficient numbers to be report. Remember ESPN has multiple channels that show games ahead of the SECN. SECN is the place for Kentucky vs. Mizzou type games. PAC and ACC big games are on ESPN or even a network. Their lower games end up on the conference networks.

Note also that the BTN killed it by broadcasting the entire Big Ten Tournament. Smart move.

 

[jumpstart]

Even so, HUGE increases over last years champ games. Big Ten 4X, SEC 2X, and Pac-12 5X over last years games. Table was for the Sunday games. ISU/Texas in Big 12 champ game drew way less than these at 336,000.

Good viewing and marquee type draws. Got the Clark factor for Big Ten, the SEC cage match of #1 vs last #1, JuJu vs Brink etc.

View attachment 97642

Another three million for Clark, Iowa, nearly matching UNC-Duke

Caitlin Clark and Iowa topped three million viewers for a second-straight week and came close to matching UNC-Duke the prior night.

www.sportsmediawatch.com

Oh yes I agree that more eyes are there because of Paige, Catlin, and the others who were the darlings at the time.

 

[TN-Gamecock]

I believe if IOWA and Carolina are in the final four this year, it could break all-time records. Let's be honest, Clark brings the eyeballs. UCONN and Carolina do not bring in the numbers as a team as much as the individual Clark does (that's just a fact).

Caitlin is laying the groundwork for future generations to follow. I find that refreshing. The one's before Caitlin did not have the right mixture of ingredients to pull off what she did.

 

[cancontent]

I believe if IOWA and Carolina are in the final four this year, it could break all-time records. Let's be honest, Clark brings the eyeballs. UCONN and Carolina do not bring in the numbers as a team as much as the individual Clark does (that's just a fact).

Caitlin is laying the groundwork for future generations to follow. I find that refreshing. The one's before Caitlin did not have the right mixture of ingredients to pull off what she did.

Does mixture of ingredients include circumstances too? Talent aside, the interest in NCAAW was starting to increase prior to her joining Iowa. NIL and marketing has also helped as well. Could she have had the same impact 5-10 years ago? I don't know.

 

[BigTenGuy]

. . . This year, there have been thirteen games with over a million viewers. . . . One (in a mild surprise) was Tennessee vs Indiana.

The TENN-IU viewership number on Fox is significantly explained by the context of Thanksgiving Day and lead in programming.
Fox opened Thanksgiving afternoon with NFL football, Green Bay at Detroit, with 33,698,000 viewers. That massive number helped the followup MBB game, Michigan State-Arizona, draw 5,183,000 viewers, the most viewers of any MBB game this season, and the only MBB game this season to outdraw the 3/3 Iowa-OSU WBB game, with 3,388,000 viewers.

The TENN-IU WBB game on Thanksgiving day followed the MBB Michigan State-AZ game, and posted 1,118,000 in viewership, a great number.

 

[visitingcock]

The TENN-IU viewership number on Fox is significantly explained by the context of Thanksgiving Day and lead in programming.
Fox opened Thanksgiving afternoon with NFL football, Green Bay at Detroit, with 33,698,000 viewers. That massive number helped the followup MBB game, Michigan State-Arizona, draw 5,183,000 viewers, the most viewers of any MBB game this season, and the only MBB game this season to outdraw the 3/3 Iowa-OSU WBB game, with 3,388,000 viewers.

The TENN-IU WBB game on Thanksgiving day followed the MBB Michigan State-AZ game, and posted 1,118,000 in viewership, a great number.

I would love to see BTN numbers comparing Viewership on that network for men’s vs women’s bb broadcasts.

Of course, the trick will be to keep the women’s viewership up. I’ll expect them to drop with Clark departing but the question is: How much? JuJu and the Bett’s sisters may help; particularly if the LA market wakes up.

 

[cancontent]

I would love to see BTN numbers comparing Viewership on that network for men’s vs women’s bb broadcasts.

Of course, the trick will be to keep the women’s viewership up. I’ll expect them to drop with Clark departing but the question is: How much? JuJu and the Bett’s sisters may help; particularly if the LA market wakes up.

And game attendance numbers. Could we see a similar trend of sell outs for USC and UCLA away games, like Iowa this season? Fans in the Eastern time zone having a chance to see them live without having to travel. A lot to watch out for next season for sure.

 

[jumpstart]

I believe if IOWA and Carolina are in the final four this year, it could break all-time records. Let's be honest, Clark brings the eyeballs. UCONN and Carolina do not bring in the numbers as a team as much as the individual Clark does (that's just a fact).

Caitlin is laying the groundwork for future generations to follow. I find that refreshing. The one's before Caitlin did not have the right mixture of ingredients to pull off what she did.

Look at the last few ESPN darlings of WBB...Plum, Ionescu, Bueckers and now Catlin and tell me what they all had in common. There were multiple articles almost daily about each one. I'll hang up and wait.