Kansas’ victory over Kentucky is ESPN’s highest rated hoop game this season

Kansas’ victory at Kentucky on Saturday in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge earned a 2.0 national rating on ESPN, making it the highest rated college basketball game of the season on the sports network.

It also was the highest rated game in the four-year history of the challenge series.

Louisville and Kansas City led the local market ratings. The game averaged a 15.6 rating in Louisville and a 12.3 rating in Kansas City.

Last year’s game between college basketball’s winningest programs, won by the Jayhawks in overtime in Lawrence, drew a 1.8 nationally and 10.1 in Kansas City.

This year’s matchup was the highest rated game in the Kansas City market on ESPN since last year’s Kansas-Oklahoma game in Lawrence, which drew a 16.8.

The top markets behind Louisville and Kansas City were Cincinnati (8.6), Nashville (6.4) and Knoxville (6.1).

This story was originally published January 30, 2017 at 11:57 AM with the headline "Kansas’ victory over Kentucky is ESPN’s highest rated hoop game this season."