While most of the media were selling Sunday’s Magic-Bulls game as if it were the playoffs, viewers apparently weren’t buying.
The NBC telecast of the Magic-Bulls game had an 8.5 overnight rating and a 22 share, according to Nielsen figures released Monday.
But that was only the network’s second-highest overnight NBA rating. The Suns-Bulls matchup Jan. 28–Super Bowl Sunday–did a 9.0/21.
Not including Sunday, NBC was averaging a 6.1 rating for 10 NBA telecasts, up 13 percent over last year’s 5.4 average.
And last year, when the teams also met on a similar date, the overnight rating was only a 5.3/14.
A national Nielsen rating point represents 959,000 TV households. Shares are a percentage of sets in use.
Locally, the telecast had a 25.7 rating and a 56 share on WMAQ-Ch. 5. The second game of Sunday’s NBA double-header, Knicks-Suns, had only an 11.7/27.
A local rating points represents 31,000 TV households.
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