Hell's Kitchen matches series high

Down to its final three contestants, Fox's "American Idol" climbed a notch from last week to rule Tuesday night.

"Idol" (24 million viewers, 8.6 preliminary adults 18 to 49 rating and a 2.4 share) came in first place for the night. Lead-out "Hell's Kitchen" (12.4 million, 5.5/14) continued to show strength behind "Idol" and matched its series high.

Coming in second place, ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" fell 9% from last week's cycle high. The drop is likely due to a lower lead-in this round from "According to Jim" (4.4 million, 1.4/4). At 10 p.m., "Women's Murder Club" (8.5 million, 2.1/6) tied CBS for second place in the hour.

CBS was close behind ABC in third place, with "NCIS" (14.7 million, 3.0/9), "Shark" (10.2 million, 2.1/5) and a repeat.

Fourth-ranked NBC won 10 p.m. with the season finale of "Law & Order: SVU" (11.3 million, 3.8/10) despite two hours of repeats for a lead-in.

The CW aired "Beauty and the Geek" (1.5 million, 0.7/2) and "Reaper" (2 million, 0.9/2), the latter slipping a notch from its recent average despite the news of its last-minute renewal.