• March 15, 2002

Nielsen//NetRatings reports that surfers flocked to the Web from home during the week ending March 10, for the latest news and analysis of the men's NCAA basketball tournament. Various sports sites such as SportsLine.com, SportingNews.com, ESPN, Fansonly.com, CNNsi and FinalFour.net all posted gains in traffic.

Traffic to SportsLine.com jumped 36% to more than 1.4 million surfers, as compared to 1.1 million surfers the week prior. SportingNews.com attracted 440,000 visitors, posting a 21% increase while ESPN grew 11% to nearly 3.4 million visitors. Fansonly.com jumped nine percent to 555,000 surfers while CNNsi grew 3% to 2.6 million surfers. FinalFour.net, the official site of the NCAA Final Four Tournament, drew 198,000 surfers this past week.

"With live game audio and real-time scoring updates, the Web is a go-to media destination for sports fans looking for the latest stats on their alma mater and favorite teams," said Jarvis Mak, senior Internet media analyst at NetRatings. "Fans turn to the Web to obtain printable brackets for March Madness and select their team picks. Sports sites are a great companion to television, enhancing the experience of fans."