nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for saturday, march 26, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the nine ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

CBS (7.39 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1) cruised to victory on Saturday with its coverage of the "NCAA Men's Basketball Championship" (9.49 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.1, #1) followed by a repeat of "Criminal Minds" (5.32 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.4, #4) and an abbreviated "48 Hours Mystery" (5.21 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #5).

FOX (4.71 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.5, #2) then had to settle for second place with its usual mix of "Cops" (4.61 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.5, #3) and "America's Most Wanted" (4.80 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2).

Next up was ABC (4.44 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3) with a rebroadcast of "Dancing With the Stars" (4.90 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T7) alongside a special "No Ordinary Family" (3.52 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T7).

And finally, repeats of "Harry's Law" (4.13 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #9), "Law & Order: Los Angeles" (3.96 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #10) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (5.15 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.1, #6) on NBC (4.41 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) rounded out the night.

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

An encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live" (3.8/9 in metered-market households), hosted by Russell Brand with musical guest Chris Brown, dominated its time period.

In the 25 markets with Local People Meters, "Saturday Night Live" averaged a 2.0 rating, 9 share in adults 18-49, making it the #1 non-sports telecast of the night, outscoring all primetime entertainment programs on ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.

"Saturday Night Live" matched its results for the same night last year in both metered-market households and in adult 18-49 rating in the 25 Local People Meter markets.

Here are the highlights of the 10 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (3/27/10):

A 90-minute "NCAA Overrun" (12.15 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.6, #1) powered CBS (9.33 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.7, #1) to victory on Saturday. Leading out of said coverage were a repeat of "NCIS: Los Angeles" (6.98 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.9, #2) and a new "48 Hours Mystery" (5.58 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T5).

The silver then went to FOX (5.08 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #2) with its usual mainstays "Cops" (4.87 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.5, #4) and "America's Most Wanted" (5.28 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.7, #3).

Next up was ABC (4.32 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3) with encores of "Dancing With the Stars" (4.33 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.0, #7) and "Castle" (4.31 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.9, #8).

And finally, repeats of "Parenthood" (2.06 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.5, #10), "Law & Order" (4.28 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.8, #9) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (4.75 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T5) on NBC (3.70 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3) rounded out the evening.

Source: Nielsen Media Research