April 15--Mamba out. Ratings up.
Kobe Bryant's record-setting performance to cap his 20-year career with Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday was the most watched NBA game ever on ESPN2, the sister channel to ESPN. It was also the highest-rated telecast on Time Warner Cable SportsNet since Dec. 8, 2013, when Bryant returned to action after an Achilles tendon injury.
The Lakers' 101-96 win over the Utah Jazz had an average national audience of 3.4 million viewers on ESPN2. As Bryant said goodbye to the fans at the Staple Center after the contest, 5.1 million viewers were tuned in, according to Nielsen figures.
On SportsNet, the game averaged a 5.7 household rating in the Los Angeles market, equal to around 313,000 homes. ESPN2 carried the game in Los Angeles as well, scoring a 6.5 rating -- or 365,000 homes -- making it the most watched NBA contest ever in the market on any ESPN channel.
Bryant's emotional farewell featured a staggering on-the-court performance in which he scored 60 points. The 37-year-old's 50 shots set a record for most field goal attempts.
Bryant's achievements overshadowed the Golden State Warriors' 125-104 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, which broke the Chicago Bulls' 20-year-old record for most NBA victories in a season. But the historic 73rd win for Stephen Curry's crew had a slightly larger audience of 3.6 million viewers on ESPN.
Both games started Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Pacific time.
The Warriors game aired exclusively in the San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose market on Comcast's CSN Bay Area, averaging a 22.3 rating, or 554,000 homes. Comcast said it was the highest rating ever for a regular season NBA game shown on a regional sports network.
Twitter: @SteveBattaglio
