Game 1 Draws Strong 12.4 Metered Market Rating, Third-Highest Game 1 Ever on ABC

ESPN’s Most-streamed NBA Finals Game 1 Ever: Average Minute Audience of Nearly 500,000 Viewers

Game 1 Peaks with 13.9, NBA Finals on ABC Projected to Win the Night for 56th Consecutive Time

The Golden State Warriors-Cleveland Cavaliers trilogy continues to deliver the best metered market ratings ever for the NBA Finals on ABC. Last night’s broadcast, in which the Warriors defeated the Cavaliers by 22 points after opening up a commanding third quarter lead, delivered a strong 12.4 metered market rating. This is the third-highest NBA Finals Game 1 ever on ABC, only surpassed by their two previous meetings, according to Nielsen.

The Game 1 broadcast peaked with a 13.9 metered market rating from 10:15-10:30 p.m. ET. The NBA Finals on ABC is projected to win the night for the 56th consecutive time.

NBA Finals Game 1 ESPN streaming records

Thursday’s Warriors-Cavaliers matchup set several ESPN NBA Finals Game 1 streaming records across metrics. Last night’s game drew an average minute streaming audience of nearly 500,000 viewers (496,000), up 43 percent from 2016. In addition, it drew 1,546,600 unique viewers, up 54 percent from last year and there were a total of 79,860,000 minutes streamed, up 43 percent.

Top five local markets on ABC:

Cleveland 33.4 San Francisco-Oakland 30.9 Columbus 17.3 Memphis 16.3 Miami 15.8

The 2017 NBA Finals will continue with Game 2 this Sunday, June 4, at 8 p.m. on ABC. For more details on ESPN’s NBA Finals coverage, please visit ESPN Media Zone.

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