What do you get when you program Game 1 of the NBA Finals against a bunch of repeats? Sheer domination in TV ratings.
ABC destroyed its broadcast competition on Thursday with the start of 2018’s (seemingly inevitable) Cavs-Warriors championship round. The Disney-owned network was first in ratings with a 4.3 rating/18 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and in total viewers with an average of 12 million, according to preliminary numbers. A special primetime “Jimmy Kimmel Live” at 8 p.m. scored a 2.5/12 and 8.6 million viewers. Pregame show “NBA Countdown” at 8:30 netted a 3.0/13 and 9.2 million viewers.