Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors received a 12.9 overnight rating, which was up 24 percent from the first game of last year’s Finals between the Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs.
The broadcast peaked with a 15.6 rating from 11:30 p.m.-11:45 p.m. ET, at which point the teams were battling it out pretty big time in the fourth quarter.
Interestingly, Game 1 represents the highest single-game rating for ABC since the network picked up the Finals back in 2003.
Cleveland led all markets with a 41.4 rating, while the San Francisco/Oakland region came in second at 28.9.
Game 2 starts at 8:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, so it’s highly likely that these “record” numbers will be bested when ratings come out following that game.
Photo: USA Today Sports