Must-see TV: Huge ratings for Steph Curry’s 50-point Game 7 in Kings-Warriors playoff series

Nearly 12 million people tuned in to see Stephen Curry’s iconic 50-point performance when the Kings played the Golden State Warriors in Game 7 of their epic first-round playoff series Sunday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.

The NBA announced Tuesday that Game 7 in the Kings-Warriors series was the most-watched first-round game in 24 years with an average of 9.8 million viewers, ABC’s largest audience ever for a non-NBA Finals postseason game. The audience peaked with 11.9 million viewers as Curry set a Game 7 scoring record in a 120-100 victory over the Kings.

According to Sports Media Watch, the game drew the largest audience for a first-round game since 1999, when 11.21 million tuned in to see the Kings play the Utah Jazz in Game 5 on NBC.

The league said first-round games across ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV were the most-watched in nine years with an average of 3.4 million viewers. That number represented a 15% increase over last season.

Curry and the Warriors have always generated huge ratings, but there was added curiosity over the Kings, who staged a dramatic turnaround under first-year coach Mike Brown. Sacramento won 48 games to secure the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference after going 32-50 a year ago.

The Kings won the first two games against the Warriors in Sacramento before losing three in a row to fall behind 3-2 in the best-of-seven series. The Kings won Game 6 at Chase Center in San Francisco to force a decisive seventh game in Sacramento.

Curry recorded his first 50-point playoff game to help the defending champion Warriors prevail in a series that was billed as the Battle of Northern California. The Warriors, who are seeking their fifth title in nine years, advanced to face the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals.