‘Idol’ finale is a boost for Fox

The series finale of “American Idol” drew the largest audience for a season finale of the Fox singing competition since 2013, helping it become the week’s most-watched network among its targeted audience of young adult viewers.

The two-hour, six-minute climax Thursday averaged 13.30 million viewers, putting it fourth among the primetime broadcast and cable programs airing between April 4 and Sunday, according to live-plus-same-day figures released Tuesday by Nielsen.

Viewership was up 65.8% from last year’s season finale, which averaged 8.03 million viewers, setting a record low for the fourth consecutive season.

The first final of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament to air on cable drew the game’s smallest audience among available records, which date to 1975. However, TBS’ coverage of Villanova’s 77-74 victory over North Carolina averaged 13.85 million viewers, second for the week, behind CBS’ “NCIS,” which averaged 15.67 million.

The previous low was 17.09 million for the 2004 final, when Connecticut defeated Georgia Tech, 82-73.

Viewership was down 51% from last year’s final between Duke and Wisconsin, which averaged 28.26 million viewers, the most for a final since 1997.

The game was the week’s most-watched program by viewers ages 18-to-49, averaging 5.73 million viewers among the group targeted by ABC, Fox and NBC and advertisers pay a premium to reach.

Fox’s hip-hop drama “Empire” was second, averaging 5.4 million, the CBS comedy “The Big Bang Theory,” third, averaging 3.9 million, and the “American Idol” finale fourth, averaging 3.86 million.

CBS was the mostwatched network for the fourth consecutive week and 21st time in the 29-week-old season.

are the combined rankings for national prime-time network and cable television last week (April 4-10), as compiled by Nielsen. They are based on the average number of people who watched a program from start to finish during its scheduled telecast or on a playback device the same day. Nielsen estimates there are 289 million potential viewers in the U.S. ages 2 and older. Viewership is listed in millions.