So much for the MVC disintegrating into a pile of dust, like (some) Wichita State fans thought.

Arch Madness Final, Wichita State vs. Illinois State: 3/5/17, 1:00 PM, CBS - 1.358M Viewers

Arch Madness Final, Loyola-Chicago vs. Illinois State: 3/4/18, 1:00 PM, CBS - 1.765M Viewers

The Wichita State vs. Cincinnati game was on CBS immediately before the MVC Final, and that yielded a slightly higher overall audience than the MVC game-- 1.831 million for a household rating of 1.25 compared to the 1.21 rating for our game. However, the LU-ISU game beat WSU-Cincy in viewers from the key demographic of 18-49, 622k to 563k.

Saturday's game at noon on CBS was Kentucky vs. Florida, and that pulled 1.695M Viewers with 501k between 18-49.

So...I think these numbers are absolutely astounding! Any thought on why these numbers are so good? Not to be a downer... but (as an attendee over the weekend) I certainly wouldn't want to compare this years attendance at the game compared to last years.

Demonstrates the value of a toehold in the Chicago market. Those ratings are excellent and should receive more publicity.