Celtics-Lakers Give ABC Ratings Christmas Present

Christmas day late game most watched regular season NBA game since 2004.

By Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 12/26/2008 12:04:00 PM

For ABC, Christmas didn’t come early; it came with the late game.

The Christmas day rematch of last year’s NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers was the most watched regular season basketball game since 2004, according to Nielsen overnight fast-national ratings.

The Celtics-Lakers game drew a 5.3 household rating and 9.96 million viewers. The household rating is up 51% from last year’s Christmas day game between the Phoenix Suns and the Lakers and up 65% in total viewers.

The early game also saw a slight ratings boost. The matchup between the San Antonio Spurs and the Phoenix Suns was up 3% in the HH rating and 15% in total viewers from last year’s early Christmas game with a 3.2 HH/ 5.76 million.

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