March Madness surges to its best TV start since 2011 with viewership up 5%
NEW YORK (AP) — The NCAA Tournament is off to its best start since CBS and TNT began showing all of the games in 2011. The tournament averaged 9. 8 million for the first three days (the First Four on Tuesday and Wednesday along with Thursday's first round) according to Nielsen, a 5% increase from last year.
Thursday's opening round games across CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV averaged 9. 8 million viewers, according to Nielsen, a 6% increase over last year. The primetime games — which included VCU's 82-78 win over North Carolina — averaged 12.
5 million, making it the most-watched first-round window in NCAA Tournament history. Tuesday and Wednesday's First Four games totaled 7. 5 million on truTV.
Miami (Ohio's) 89-79 victory over SMU on Wednesday averaged 2. 8 million, making the most-watched First Four game when they take place in Dayton, Ohio. The 2021 First Four took place throughout Indiana because of COVID-19, and the games were all on a Thursday.
___ AP March Madness: https://apnews. com/hub/march-madness