December 27, 2017
Viewers of the Sixers' win over the Knicks on Christmas Day helped ESPN and ABC increase ratings for their annual slate of holiday games.
According to ESPN, the early game at Madison Square Garden averaged a 2.4 metered market rating, tying it with last year's matchup between the Celtics and Knicks for the highest-rated noon game on Christmas since 2012.
Overall, ESPN and ABC averaged a 3.9 rating for this year's games, a 39 percent increase from last year, which averaged 2.8 for the five games. Here are some other ratings highlights from Christmas Day, per ESPN:
The NBA Finals rematch, in which the Golden State Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 99-92, delivered a 5.5 metered market rating, matching the fifth-highest rated early ABC window ever on Christmas
The Washington Wizards 111-103 victory over the Boston Celtics generated a 3.7 metered market rating, up nine percent from last year’s comparable game – the Chicago Bulls vs. the San Antonio Spurs, which drew a 3.4
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s 112-107 victory over the Houston Rockets on ABC drew a 4.1 metered market rating, making it the highest-rated prime-time NBA Christmas broadcast since 2003.
The Sixers are scheduled to appear on national television nine more times this season, with six of those games on the road. The remaining national TV games for Philly are as follows:
• Thursday, Dec. 28 @ Portland Trailblazers, 10:30 p.m. — TNT
• Thursday, Jan. 18 @ Boston Celtics, 7 p.m. – TNT
• Sunday, Jan. 28 @ Oklahoma City Thunder, 6 p.m. – ESPN
• Friday, Feb. 2 vs. Miami Heat 8 p.m. — ESPN
• Tuesday, Feb. 6 vs. Washington Wizards, 8 p.m. — TNT
• Sunday, Feb. 25 @ Washington Wizards, 8 p.m. — ESPN
• Thursday, March 1 @ Cleveland Cavaliers, 8 p.m. — TNT
• Sunday, March 6 @ Milwaukee Bucks, 8 p.m. — ESPN
• Wednesday, April 11 vs. Milwaukee Bucks, 8 p.m. — ESPN
