Ratings Roundup: SNL Special Tops NBA All-Star Game; Turner Nets Four Best All-Star Saturday Night Ever

Turner Sports' NBA All-Star 2015 coverage from New York delivered the highest-rated and most-viewed sports programs of the week and saw growth on digital platforms, but ratings for the All-Star Game itself were down from last year - likely due to fierce competition from opposing networks.

Turner Sports' exclusive presentation of the 64th annual NBA All-Star Game from Madison Square Garden delivered an average of 7.2 million total viewers and a 4.3 U.S. HH rating on TNT and TBS, the top rated sports program of the week. However, That number is flat in ratings and down 4% in viewership from last year opposite the Olympics (4.3, 7.5M) and down 7% and 10%, respectively, from 2013 (4.6, 8.0M). The Game faced off against the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary special on NBC, which drew a whopping 23.14 million viewers.

The NBA All-Star Game earned an 8.8 locally, the highest rating in New York throughout Turner's history televising the event.

One day earlier, Turner Sports' NBA All-Star Saturday Night delivered significant audience totals across all platforms including an average of 6.1 million total viewers watching the live event telecast on TNT. The telecast, which averaged a 3.4 U.S. HH rating, propelled the network to win the night across all of television. TNT's coverage of State Farm All-Star Saturday Night is up 10% in U.S. HH rating and 7% among total viewers over last year. It ranks as the fourth most-viewed telecast in the history of the event. Last night's telecast peaked with a 4.2 U.S. HH rating and 7.8 million total viewers from 10:45-11 p.m. ET. The game netted increases across all core demographics including a 29% spike in Men 25-54 and a 19% increase in Adults 25-54.

The TNT telecast garnered a 7.2 HH rating in New York to generate the highest rating ever for the event in the market

On the digital side, NBA All-Star Game and State Farm All-Star Saturday Night content published across Turner's NBA on TNT and NBA TV accounts via Facebook and Twitter reached a gross audience of more than 150 million fans and followers and generated more than 25 million video views. Over the course of the weekend, NBA All-Star events airing across Turner networks were the most-discussed programming across all of television, according to Social Guide. NBA All-Star content also propelled growth across live video streams, including Turner's TVE platforms, with nearly a 90% increase for State Farm All-Star Saturday Night and more than 50% improvement for the NBA All-Star Game

As for the Friday night NBA-All Star Events, the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game drew 1.8 million viewers on ESPN, down 27% from last year (2.5M) and the smallest audience for the game since 2008 (1.6M).

TNT drew 1.6 million viewers for Friday's NBA Rising Stars Challenge, down 12% from last year (1.8M) and the least-watched edition of the event since at least 2007.

The NBA All-Star Style fashion show earned a 1.2 million viewers on TNT Saturday evening, down 44% from last year's NBA All-Star Challenge - a race between TNT's NBA studio team (2.1M). (SportsMediaWatch)

ESPN's telecast of No. 4 Duke's 92-90 overtime victory against No. 15 North Carolina on Wednesday, Feb. 18, averaged 4,136,000 viewers and a 2.6 US rating, making it the most-viewed and highest-rated college basketball game of the season across all cable and broadcast networks. It also ranks as ESPN's fourth most-viewed Duke vs. North Carolina telecast ever and the network's 11th most-viewed men's college basketball game all-time. It is also the highest rated men's college basketball telecast on ESPN in Greensboro since February 23, 2013 (NC State vs. North Carolina) and in Charlotte since January 26, 2012 (NC State vs. North Carolina). In terms of top metered markets, Greensboro averaged a 14.3 rating, followed by Raleigh-Durham (10.8), Louisville (8.9), Charlotte (8.5), and Greenville (7.2).

In addition to a significant television audience, the ACC matchup generated 10,100,000 minutes of live viewing and 246,000 unique viewers on WatchESPN, making it the platform's top men's college basketball game ever

Nielsen ratings for the Lakers in the Los Angeles market are at an all-time low, dipping below a 2.00 rating for the first time. The Lakers' 1.95 rating on Time Warner Cable SportsNet is down 25% from this point last season and puts the team on pace to break the record low 2.11 figure it posted for the 2013-14 season. The Lakers' TV ratings have declined in each of the three seasons they have partnered with TWC, which is paying the team $5 billion over 25 years. The team's ratings are down 57% from only two years ago, when it posted a 4.63 during Dwight Howard's one season in L.A. The Clippers are averaging a 1.10 rating on Prime Ticket, a drop of 13% from the same point last season. The ratings gap between the Lakers and Clippers is the lowest on record. (Los Angeles Times)

TSN kicked off 2015 with its best month in five years, as final data from Numeris (BBM Canada) confirms that January 2015 is the second most-watched month in the network's 30-year history. Overall, TSN averaged 230,000 viewers (Total Viewers; Full Day/ 24 Hours) throughout January 2015, marking an 18% increase compared to January 2014. This ranks second only to TSN's all-time monthly record set in February 2010 during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

TSN's strong ratings scorecard for January 2015 was highlighted by huge numbers for its World Juniors coverage, as TSN and RDS combined to average 7.1 million for the Gold Medal Game, ranking as the most-watched telecast ever on Specialty TV. Team Canada's seven games averaged 3.2 million - the highest ever for a World Juniors tournament and the first time every Team Canada game attracted an average audience of

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