Weekly Cable Ratings: NBA, NHL Playoffs, NFL Draft Score for TNT, ESPN in Primetime

ESPN and TNT’s NBA and NHL postseason coverage propelled both networks to the top of the primetime charts during the last full week of April.

TNT topped all cable networks in primetime during the week of April 22-28 with an average of 2.5 million viewers, according to Nielsen numbers supplied by Fox News Media. The network was led by its April 28 Game 4 telecast of the Minnesota Timberwolves-Phoenix Suns NBA playoff series, which averaged 3.6 million viewers.

Also Read: Warner Bros. Stock Nears All-Time Low Following Report of Comcast’s Aggressive NBA TV Rights Bid

ESPN finished second for the week with 2 million viewers, paced by its April 25 telecast of the NFL draft, which drew 5.5 million viewers.

Fox News Channel was third with 1.9 million viewers, followed by MSNBC’s 1.4 million viewers and CNN’s 772,000 watchers. HGTV was sixth with 734,000 viewers, followed by Hallmark Channel (686,000 viewers), History (658,000), TBS (615,000) and USA Network (547,000).

Fox News finished first on a 24-hour basis for the 16th straight week, with 1.2 million viewers, followed by MSNBC (980,000 viewers), TNT (805,000), ESPN (744,000), and CNN (582,000), according to Nielsen.