The Great Canadian Ratings Report: Raptors rise to an unprecedented level

Quick sports quiz

: When was the last time basketball topped the Canadian sports ratings?

A) The night all other channels were blacked out;
B) Are you kidding?
C) Never;
D) The night Michael Jordan appeared on Duck Dynasty.   

The answer: They're all correct since A and D never happened, the same way basketball's dominance never happened.   

At least, until Sunday night when 1.5 million people tuned into TSN to watch Game 7 of the Toronto Raptors series against the Miami Heat. That was not only a TSN record for basketball, but it beat everything on television that day as well as outdrawing anything the NHL had to offer.

The audience peaked at 2.7 million, with 4.8 million Canadians watching at least some part of the game.

As impressive as that seems, it was actually even more incredible. According to Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, another 200,000 Canadians watched on ABC. So an average of 1.7 million watched the Raptors make their own history.

But the actual number is irrelevant because the formerly ignored Raptors are enjoying the biggest ride of their existence.

Their series against the Heat averaged 1.15 million viewers on TSN and Sportsnet -- an unheard-of number for basketball in Canada.

To put it in perspective, that's almost five times what the team's games averaged during the regular season.

To put into further perspective, Sportsnet reports that its average for Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs was 724,000 -- 38 per cent above the Round 1 average.

But before people start claiming that the NBA is surpassing the NHL in Canada, let's take a closer look. The Washington-Pittsburgh second-round series averaged 1.44 million. That's not only 38 per cent over what the best Round 2 all-American series produced last season, it's 25 per cent higher than the Raptors-Heat series.

But regardless, this is a watershed moment in the Raptors' history -- one that could produce an entire new generation of basketball fans in Canada. And one that should elevate the Raptors to another level next season.

Here are the most-watched sports events on English-language television for the past weekend, according to Numeris overnight ratings:

1. NBA, Heat at Raptors, Sunday, TSN: 1,500,000 (ABC audience not measured)

2. NHL, Sharks at Blues, Sunday, CBC: 1,400,000

3. NHL, Lightning at Penguins, Friday, CBC: 1,180,000

4. NBA, Raptors at Heat, Friday, Sportsnet: 1,150,000

5. MLB, Blue Jays at Rangers, Saturday, Sportsnet: 1,100,000

6. MLB, Blue Jays at Rangers, Sunday, Sportsnet: 916,000

7. MLB, Blue Jays at Rangers, Friday, Sportsnet: 662,000

8. Hockey worlds, Canada vs. Slovakia, Saturday, TSN: 478,000

9. PGA, Players Championship final round, Sunday, Global: 386,000

10. PGA, Players Championship third round, Saturday, Global: 360,000

11. Auto racing, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Sunday, TSN: 265,000 (Fox audience not measured)

12. Auto racing, F1 Spanish Grand Prix, Sunday, TSN: 214,000

13. MLS, Toronto FC at Vancouver, Saturday, TSN: 162,000

14. Martial arts, UFC preliminaries, Saturday, TSN: 156,000

15. Athletics, Golden League, Saturday, CBC: 142,000

16. Hockey worlds, Russia vs. Switzerland, Saturday, TSN: 141,000

17. Hockey worlds, Slovakia-Finland/Switzerland-Sweden, Sunday TSN: 131,000

18. Hockey worlds, Denmark vs. Czech Republic, Sunday, TSN: 115,000

19. MLB, Diamondbacks at Dodgers, Sunday, TSN: 113,000

20. MLB, White Sox at Yankees, Saturday, Sportsnet: 101,000

THREE TO WATCH

Undiscovered territory: That's where the Toronto Raptors find themselves as the franchise finds itself in the NBA conference final for the  first time in history. Sure, they're big underdogs to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, and most expect to bow out quietly, but nobody in Toronto is complaining. The series starts Tuesday (8:30 p.m. ET, Sportsnet.)

Thanks for the Memorials: With Canadian franchises sitting in the stands for the NHL playoffs, those who follow hockey teams from this country should have a great time watching the Memorial Cup tournament, an all-Canadian affair. Things get rolling Friday (7:30 p.m. ET, Sportsnet.)

Today, the world: Canadian hockey fans are also expecting to be rooting for the red-and-white on Sunday at the IIHF world hockey championship, assuming Team Canada makes it that far. Given what's happened so far, it should be a lock. The final goes Sunday (1:30 p.m. ET, TSN.)