UConn's win over SDSU lowest-viewed NCAA men's final on record

[Halldan1]

UConn's win lowest-viewed NCAA final on record

Connecticut's victory over San Diego State in the men's national championship game ended up being the lowest-viewed final on record, averaging under 15 million viewers.

www.espn.com

Associated Press

NEW YORK -- Connecticut's victory over San Diego State in the men's national championship game ended up being the lowest-viewed final on record.

The Huskies' 76-59 win averaged 14.69 million viewers on CBS. The previous low was 15.99 in 2018, when Villanova beat Michigan on TBS.

UConn's 2004 victory over Georgia Tech, which averaged 17.09 million, was the lowest on CBS until Monday night. CBS and TBS began alternating Final Fours in 2016.

Still, Monday's game was the most-watched program on television that evening and the most-watched basketball game -- college or pro -- since Kansas' victory over North Carolina in last year's national championship game.

The women's NCAA championship game set a record Sunday when LSU beat Iowa 102-85, with 9.9 million viewers on ABC and ESPN2.

This year's men's tournament averaged 9.55 million, down 7% from last year but up 4% from 2021. The first round on March 16-17 averaged 9.2 million, a record for the most-watched round of 64.

The lack of national name-brand teams after upsets the first weekend and in the regional semifinals took a toll on viewing numbers.

 

[CL82]

The lack of national name-brand teams after upsets the first weekend and in the regional semifinals took a toll on viewing numbers.

Say what now? 😄

(Translation for the quote above: less people watch college basketball once their pool is busted. For what it’s worth, a 920 start on the East Coast probably hurts viewership as well.)

 

[STLPirate12]

9:20et start for a game that nobody really expected to be competitive... I'm not surprised at all.

 

[mzadnik]

Probably a slight uptick if FAU had beated SDSU, but ratings were definitely hurt by not having a blue blood or top seed on the other side against UConn.

I know there was one guy who was happy to see SDSU in the finals against UConn:

Bettor wins millions on UConn/NFL Playoff parylays

 

[shu09]

Not good for the Big East that the two lowest rated championship games involved its teams.

 

[HallLine69]

9:20et start for a game that nobody really expected to be competitive... I'm not surprised at all.

"Still, Monday's game was the most-watched program on television that evening and the most-watched basketball game -- college or pro -- since Kansas' victory over North Carolina in last year's national championship game."

 

[SHUMikechine]

60 minutes was also way down. They drew 6.7m.

 

[Gohall129]

The men and women need to switch time slots for the final four weekend or piggy back one another. Sunday evening national championship for the men would be best case scenario

 

[radecicco]

The men and women need to switch time slots for the final four weekend or piggy back one another. Sunday evening national championship for the men would be best case scenario

The FF used to be Saturday - Sunday. It was changed to the current format because broadcasters determined that the national semi finals would capture a greater audience on Saturday rather than Thursday night.

 

[HallBall02]

With two non power 6 schools without much NCAA history and a middle of the pack ACC team making the final four probably made this the worst group in history for CBS/NCAA.

Did the Miami UConn game get more eyes on it then the championship? I wouldn’t be surprised if it did.

 

[TrueBlue1989]

Not good for the Big East that the two lowest rated championship games involved its teams.

?????? It is a BE problem that people didn’t think SDSU could play competitively with UConn? Ok

 

[CL82]

Probably a slight uptick if FAU had beated SDSU, but ratings were definitely hurt by not having a blue blood or top seed on the other side against UConn.

I know there was one guy who was happy to see SDSU in the finals against UConn:

Bettor wins millions on UConn/NFL Playoff parylays

Obviously, a time traveler.

 

[shu09]

?????? It is a BE problem that people didn’t think SDSU could play competitively with UConn? Ok

No. It's an indicator that the league might not have as large of a national brand as we might think. We hate to admit it around here, but not being on ESPN all winter hurts the league.

 

[SHUSA]

Not good for the Big East that the two lowest rated championship games involved its teams.

but at the same time, if youre always in the championship youll tend to be at all levels of viewership.

how is the big 10s viewership the last decade, for instance?

 

[NYShoreGuy]

No. It's an indicator that the league might not have as large of a national brand as we might think. We hate to admit it around here, but not being on ESPN all winter hurts the league.

Fox not being able to market their product well is the key

 

[SHUisNJsTeam]

UConn's win lowest-viewed NCAA final on record

Connecticut's victory over San Diego State in the men's national championship game ended up being the lowest-viewed final on record, averaging under 15 million viewers.

www.espn.com

The lack of national name-brand teams after upsets the first weekend and in the regional semifinals took a toll on viewing numbers.

UConn is certainly a national name brand. SDSU not so much. Plus, the way UConn was absolutely pummeling opponents everyone knew they would more likely than not throttle their mid-major opponent…which they did. It wasn’t a question if UConn would win, the only question was by how much.

 

[radecicco]

No. It's an indicator that the league might not have as large of a national brand as we might think. We hate to admit it around here, but not being on ESPN all winter hurts the league.

It’s not ESPN. Outside of UCONN, all the BE schools are small, religious affiliated (sans BU), that don’t have the state wide gigantic alumni base of the football leagues. That’s never going to change. Yet the league continues to be successful. We’ll see how the next media deal plays out.

 

[Halldan1]

Final Kenpom

1	Big 12 Conference	+17.99
2	Big Ten Conference	+14.88
3	Big East Conference	+13.95
4	Southeastern Conference	+12.57
5	Pac 12 Conference	+11.58
6	Mountain West Conference	+9.26
7	Atlantic Coast Conference	+8.58
8	American Athletic Conference	+6.72
9	West Coast Conference	+6.27
10	Conference USA	+3.60

 

[TheHall87]

Associated Press The lack of a name-brand teams after upsets the first weekend and in the regional semifinals took a toll on viewing numbers.

Say what now? 😄

(Translation for the quote above: less people watch college basketball once their pool is busted. For what it’s worth, a 920 start on the East Coast probably hurts viewership as well.)

To some degree, yes, but the casual fan -- the ones who drive the numbers -- are less interested if the big brand names aren't playing. A 7% decline year over year is indicative of that.

The 9:20 start time is a red herring. The game has been starting at that time for years. The UNC-Kansas game on a cable channel (TBS) drew four million more viewers in the same time slot just last year.

Would they generate a bigger number starting earlier? Maybe. I'm sure CBS/TBS/the NCAA have run the numbers and determined that 9:20 is the better option than 8:20 or even 8:50. They probably lose more than one viewer on the west coast for every fewer they gain on the east coast if they start earlier.

 

[CL82]

To some degree, yes, but the casual fan -- the ones who drive the numbers -- are less interested if the big brand names aren't playing. A 7% decline year over year is indicative of that.

The 9:20 start time is a red herring. The game has been starting at that time for years. The UNC-Kansas game on a cable channel (TBS) drew four million more viewers in the same time slot just last year.

Would they generate a bigger number starting earlier? Maybe. I'm sure CBS/TBS/the NCAA have run the numbers and determined that 9:20 is the better option than 8:20 or even 8:50. They probably lose more than one viewer on the west coast for every fewer they gain on the east coast if they start earlier.

Yeah, but in this case, the big brand they had was an East Coast team. Starting at 8 o’clock would have allowed more people on the East Coast to tune in. The other point I made I think was more important. You lose a lot of people once they’re brackets are blown. That said, I care more about the trophy than I do about the ratings.

 

[HALL85]

Yeah, but in this case, the big brand they had was an East Coast team. Starting at 8 o’clock would have allowed more people on the East Coast to tune in. The other point I made I think was more important. You lose a lot of people once they’re brackets are blown. That said, I care more about the trophy than I do about the ratings.

As gambling has brought in more casual fans which has had a big impact on ratings, agree with CL on this. One pool I was in had three picking UConn as NC’s out of 113 entries (no SDSU picks). Winner was crowned before FF and only two people had a chance to get in the money if UConn won. My daughter was one of them and she only watched because of that.