Cavaliers win, Hawks’ Carroll hurts knee

Cavaliers win, Hawks' Carroll hurts kneeLeBron James scored 31 points, and J.R. Smith added 28, including eight three-pointers, to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers past the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks 97-89 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday night.Making a tough night even worse for the Hawks, they sustained a potentially huge blow in the fourth quarter when DeMarre Carroll went out with a knee injury.Intent on bringing Cleveland its first NBA title, James sealed the victory with a soaring dunk in the final minute.[...] Smith was the one who ignited the Cavaliers, going 8-of-12 from three-point range.Carroll, who had been the Hawks' leading scorer in the playoffs, went down driving to the basket with 4:59 remaining.Coach Mike Budenholzer said the initial diagnosis was a sprained knee, with an MRI exam scheduled Thursday.[...] the Cavs scored the first 11 points of the final period for their biggest lead, 85-67.Carroll's injury silenced the crowd and would be tough for the Hawks to overcome.Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard of San Antonio was the leading vote-getter for the NBA's All-Defensive first team, where he was joined by the Warriors' Draymond Green,...