The NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament's opening day, including the Oakland vs. Kentucky game, attracted significant viewership, marking a notable moment in sports broadcasting. The Oakland vs. Kentucky game, aired on CBS, drew an impressive 6.2 million viewers and a 3.4 rating, making it the most-watched opening round game since the 2019 match between Duke and NDSU, and the second most watched since 2011. This game alone contributed to the overall success of the tournament's first day, which saw an average viewership of 8.5 million across all games, the highest in nine years. Other notable games included NC State vs. Texas Tech, also on CBS, which attracted 4.6 million viewers, and the top cable game between Colorado St. and Texas on TNT, which had 2.5 million viewers. The increased interest in the tournament's opening day highlights the enduring appeal of March Madness and sets a positive tone for the remainder of the tournament.
Oakland's win over Kentucky drew an average 6.2 million viewers on CBS. That marks the largest audience for an opening round March Madness game in five years. https://t.co/N4B0pYxUZ7
Thursday's coverage of the men's NCAA Tournament was the most-watched First Round Opening Day since 2015 with 8.5 million average viewers 🏀 https://t.co/iCuv7rZL0h
An average 8.5 million viewers watched the opening day of Men's March Madness—the most in 9 years. https://t.co/XCnGolSPaG
Kentucky-Oakland was the second most watched First Round NCAA Tournament game since 2011 🙁
Sports Media Watch: Thursday’s Oakland-Kentucky NCAA men’s b-ball tournament first-round game averaged a 3.4 rating and 6.21 million viewers on CBS, marking the largest audience for an opening round game since 2019.
Oakland's upset of Kentucky is most-watched opening round NCAA Tournament game since Zion-era Duke against NDSU in 2019: https://t.co/MgNFXf1GdK
Top NCAA Men's games on Thursday Oakland/Kentucky, CBS: 6.2m NC State/Texas Tech, CBS: 4.6m Top cable game: Colorado St./Texas, TNT: 2.5m