The NBA Finals Game 1 between the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers set a record as the highest-rated series game opener on ABC, with over 19 million viewers tuning in. The game got an 11.1 U.S. household rating.

Nielsen, a global information and measurement company, said that the American Broadcasting Company surpassed the previous viewership high of 17,768,000 by eight percent, a record that was set last year during a game between the same two NBA teams. The viewership was the highest for a Game 1 NBA Finals on any network since 1998.

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Last season, the game between the Warriors and the Cavaliers attracted 22,610,000 viewers and got a 12.9 rating.

The latest game between the two teams is the most-watched NBA game ever on WatchESPN with an average audience of 347,000 per minute. ESPN drew a 0.6 Hispanic household rating with 124,000 total viewers, making it the most-watched and highest-rated Game 1 of an NBA Finals on the network.

In overnight ratings, the Wednesday night match got a 32.8 rating in San Francisco and 36.0 in Cleveland. The ratings represent the percentage of U.S. homes with televisions tuned to a program.

The Warriors currently lead the series 1-0. The defending NBA champions are looking to win their first back-to-back title and their fifth NBA crown.

The Warriors, who were expected to reach the championship round of the league in a much easier way, were surprisingly tested after the Thunder won two-straight games at the Chesapeake Energy Arena following their Game 1 victory in the Bay Area. The 2015 NBA Kings were put on the verge of being eliminated from the series before bouncing back.

The Cavaliers entered the league's championship round after sweeping their first and second round opponents in the Eastern Conference playoffs before beating the Toronto Raptors in the final round of the conference. Last season, Cleveland was just two games away from winning their first championship title, but the Warriors won three-straight games to claim their first NBA crown since 1975.

Tagscleveland cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, NBA Finals, Lebron James, Stephen Curry