Boosted by a pair of strong primetime games, TNT’s coverage of the NBA playoffs tipped with a 36% leap in audience for its opening tripleheader.The network showed a trio of games on Sunday April 17, posting a 2.8 U.S. household rating average, up 27% from a 2.2 for a comparable set of contests last year. TNT registered a 33% rise in homes to 3.29 million from 2.47 million, translating into 4.54 million watchers, 36% more the 3.34 million a year ago.Specifically, TNT scored a 3.6 rating, 4.17 million homes and just under 6 million viewers for its coverage of the Boston Celtics’ 87-85 win over the New York Knicks. Those numbers for the game that started at 7 p.m. (ET) represented gains of 44%, 46% and 53% over the 2.5 rating, 2.86 million homes and 3.93 million watchers for the San Antonio Spurs-Dallas Mavericks matchup in 2010, according to Broadcasting and Cable.