TV Ratings : Series Help CBS Eke Out a Win

CBS eked out a victory in the prime-time ratings last week, but no thanks to the college basketball playoffs. Its coverage of the early tournament games on Thursday, Friday and Saturday ranked among the bottom third of the ratings released Tuesday by the A. C. Nielsen Co. But with strong showings for its Sunday and Monday series, CBS wound up averaging a 12.2 rating for the week, compared to 12.1 for ABC, 11.1 for NBC and 8.7 for Fox.

* Things may be looking up for ABC’s first-year drama “Homefront.” The post-World War II series finished second in its time period last week behind CBS’ “48 Hours,” and ABC said that the network’s 10 p.m. Wednesday ratings are running 21% higher than the season average in the three weeks that “Homefront” has been there.

Points Share 1. “60 Minutes” (CBS) 23.4 38 2. “Roseanne” (ABC) 21.4 33 3. “Murphy Brown” (CBS) 21.2 32 4. “Home Improvement” (ABC) 19.6 31 5. “Coach” (ABC) 18.5 29 * “Homefront” (ABC) 10.7 19

Complete list, F9

(Each rating point represents 921,000 homes. Share is the percentage of viewing audience.)