ABC wins in Nielsen ratings behind classic Celtics-Lakers NBA Finals series

NBA Finals help ABC to big Nielsen ratings week

NEW YORK — A classic Celtics-Lakers NBA Finals series is proving to be a summertime tonic for ABC.

The Nielsen Co. said Tuesday that three games of the series helped ABC to its best summer week in six years. Sunday’s Game 5 was the most-watched NBA Finals game in five years, since Game 7 of a Detroit-San Antonio series in 2005.

ABC won the week — averaging 8 million viewers — even though “The Bachelorette” was the only other program it had among Nielsen’s 30 most popular shows last week.

Nielsen also said the Chicago Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup victory over the Philadelphia Flyers last week was seen on NBC by 8.28 million, the most-watched NHL game in 36 years.