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Damian Calhoun. Sports Newsroom Assistant.

// MORE INFORMATION: Associate Mug Shot taken August 24, 2010 : by KATE LUCAS, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

NEWPORT BEACH – As far as last-second heaves are concerned, Fountain Valley’s Matt Serven had a good one.

Off of a missed free throw with less than one second remaining, Serven got the ball and launched a one-handed shot from the other end of the court and hit the back of the rim as time expired.

“It looked good,” Newport Harbor coach Robert Torribio said. “It looked real good.”

Fortunately for the Sailors, the ball didn’t find its way through the net, giving them a hard-fought 38-36 victory over the visiting Barons in a Sunset League game on Friday.

The Sailors (19-5, 4-2) led, 36-30, after a 3-point field goal from Collin Pipkin, but the Barons (15-8, 1-5) responded with 3-pointer from Serven.

The victory puts Newport Harbor in a tie for second place with Edison.

After Newport Harbor’s Charlie Stassel knocked home a pair of free throws for a 38-34 lead, Sean Huynh of Fountain Valley answered with a layup, cutting the lead to 38-36 with two seconds left.

Andrew Laidlaw missed the front end of a 1-and-1, leading to Serven’s last-second attempt.

“The ball wasn’t going in the hole for us, but we kept battling all night,” Torribio said. “It was a great effort.”

The game was tied 7-7 at the end of the first quarter.

“I told our guys, first team to 20 (points) wins the game,” Torribio said.

Newport Harbor led, 24-16, at halftime. The Barons went on a 12-0 run in the third quarter to take a 28-26 lead. Newport Harbor retook the lead, 32-30, in the fourth with a 3-pointer from Zach Blaine.

Huynh led the Barons with 10 points, and Spencer and Serven scored eight and seven, respectively.

Stassel led the Sailors with 15. Blaine had eight.

“It is frustrating,” Fountain Valley coach Steven Schultz said. “We had opportunities. We missed open looks. We battled back, took the lead, but unfortunately, we’re not making shots right now.”

Contact the writer: dcalhoun@ocregister.com