March Madness 2025 Averages 9.4M Viewers Through 1st 2 Rounds, Most-Watched Since 1993

The 2025 NCAA tournament captivated fans across the nation during its first week of action.

It was announced on Tuesday that the first two rounds of March Madness this year drew an average of 9.4 million viewers across TNT Sports and CBS Sports, making it the most-watched tournament since 1993:

Interestingly, viewership has increased despite a relative lack of drama that is expected from the NCAA tournament. There weren't many upsets through the first two rounds, and many of the games ended in large blowouts. No. 10 Arkansas, in its first year under head coach John Calipari, is the only double-digit seed to advance to the Sweet 16, with every other team seeded sixth or higher.

Still, there have been some bright spots that exemplified March Madness. No. 4 Maryland outlasted No. 12 Colorado State 72-71 on a buzzer-beater by freshman center Derik Queen.

No. 1 Florida and No. 8 UConn played perhaps the best game of the tournament so far, with the Gators defeating the two-time defending champion Huskies 77-75 to end their bid for a three-peat.

Fans who tuned in were treated to an instant classic that saw Florida make a late comeback in the second half and stave off UConn's attempts to regain the lead. Gators first-team All-American guard Walter Clayton Jr. scored 13 of his 23 points in the final eight minutes to help put the game away.

The second weekend of the NCAA tournament should bring more excitement with marquee matchups like No. 1 Duke vs. No. 4 Arizona, No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 3 Kentucky, No. 1 Auburn vs. No. 5 Michigan and more.