Beal, Wizards down Hawks

He scores 28 despite bad ankle

Bradley Beal shook off a sprained ankle to score 28 points and the visiting Washington Wizards remained unbeaten in the postseason, knocking off the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks, 104-98, Sunday in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Taking advantage of a week off since their sweep of Toronto in the opening round, the Wizards wore down the Hawks in the fourth quarter. Otto Porter scored a couple of big baskets coming down the stretch and Marcin Gortat sealed it with a lay-in off a pass from John Wall with 14.6 seconds remaining.

The Wizards became the first team in National Basketball Association history to win four straight Game 1s on the road, improving to 8-1 in the playoffs away from D.C. over the last two years.

The Hawks needed six games to beat eight-seeded Brooklyn and had to open this best-of-seven series with about a 36-hour turnaround. After racing to a 3726 lead after the first quarter, Atlanta couldn’t make anything in the fourth.

Even with plenty of good looks, the Hawks shot just 5 of 28 in the final period, including 1 of 10 from threepoint range.

Demarre Carroll had another big game for Atlanta with 24 points, but he went scoreless in the final quarter.

Warriors 101, Grizzlies 86: Stephen Curry, who will be named as the league’s MVP on Monday according to multiple reports, had 22 points and seven assists, and host Golden State wore down undermanned Memphis in Game 1 of the teams’ Western Conference semifinal series.

Klay Thompson added 18 points to help the top-seeded Warriors roll to their 21st straight victory at raucous Oracle Arena. They led by nine at the half, 20 late in the third quarter and never let the Grizzlies build any momentum in the fourth.

Marc Gasol had 21 points and Zach Randolph finished with 20 points for a Memphis team missing point guard Mike Conley. He sat on the bench in a suit, his left eye still swollen, as he continues to recover from surgery to repair broken bones in his face. Conley’s status for the rest of the series remains in limbo.