Most-watched hoops game in ESPN history: Iowa-UConn

BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — Iowa’s 71-69 victory over UConn in the women’s Final Four Friday night averaged 14.2 million viewers on ESPN, making it the highest-ranked women’s basketball game most watched on record and the largest audience for an ESPN basketball broadcast. .

The previous mark in women’s hoops was 12.3 million for last Monday’s Iowa-LSU game in the Elite Eight. Game 7 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals between Cleveland and Boston was ESPN’s most-watched basketball game with 13.51 million viewers.

It also makes it one of the most-watched games in any sport other than college football and the NFL over the past two years. Last year, the NCAA men’s title game between San Diego State and UConn averaged 14.79 million.

The Hawkeyes game, which saw its audience peak at 17 million, will likely be among the top 50 primetime TV shows of 2024. It would have finished 32nd on last year’s list.

It is also ESPN’s second-largest audience for a non-football broadcast. The United States-Portugal match in the group stage of the 2014 Men’s World Cup averaged 18.22 million spectators.

The last NBA game to draw at least 14 million was Golden State’s win over Boston in Game 6 of the 2022 NBA Finals (14.22 million).

Clark’s five March Madness games on ESPN and ABC averaged 8.3 million. Iowa will face South Carolina for the national championship Sunday afternoon on ABC.

South Carolina’s 78-59 victory over North Carolina State averaged 7.1 million viewers, making it the third most-watched women’s national semifinal since records began. be retained in 1992.

The previous record for most-watched semifinal was Stanford vs. Virginia on CBS in 1992 (8.1 million).

Friday’s two games averaged 10.8 million viewers, an increase of 138% from last year.