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Nielsen says 2013 NCAA tournament most-watched in 19 years

There were plenty of compelling stories in the 2013 NCAA tournament. Whether it was Florida Gulf Coast coming out of nowhere, four Big Ten teams reaching the Sweet 16, Wichita State's magical run, Marshall Henderson's mouth or the drama surrounding Kevin Ware's injury and Louisville's title.

All of it was reflected in television ratings that haven't been seen since 1994.

CBS Sports and Turner Sports televised every game of this year's tournament on four different channels (CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV) and averaged 10.7 million viewers, an 11 percent increase from the 2012 tournament, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Monday night's national title game between Louisville and Michigan also produced a notable increase in viewers. Nielsen reported the game averaged 23.4 million viewers, a 12 percent increase over last season's game between Kentucky and Kansas.