The opening weekend of the NCAA men's basketball tournament wasn't as thrilling as many fans hoped for, especially since there was a big lack of upsets in the first two rounds.
However, that didn't stop college basketball fans from tuning into the tournament as TNT Sports and CBS Sports announced on Tuesday that the networks saw their best viewership numbers since 1993 this past weekend.
Across the four channels—CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV—there was an average of 9.4 million viewers from Thursday to Sunday. Sunday's second-round slot, which was led by the Duke–Baylor and Kentucky–Illinois matchups, saw an average of 10.1 million viewers.
TNT Sports and CBS Sports are Delivering the NCAA Tournament's Best Viewership Since 1993, Averaging 9.4 Million Viewers Through the Second Round pic.twitter.com/mOfcKtg7wC
— March Madness Men’s Basketball TV (@MM_MBB_TV) March 25, 2025
The first round of coverage broke a record across the networks as the 9.1 million average viewers set the new mark for the most-watched first round of the NCAA men's tournament in history.
So, despite the lack of chaos, nail biters and buzzer beaters, fans are still excited to watch the best teams in the country compete for the national title. We'll see what viewership looks like during the second weekend of action.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NCAA Men's Tournament Coverage Seeing Record-Breaking Viewership Despite Lack of Upsets.
