Alaska broke away from the clutches of Meralco early on Sunday night and never looked back, claiming a place in the PBA Philippine Cup’s Final Four which the Aces were first denied of.

The Aces held the Bolts to a measly 25 points in the first half and took a 22-point bubble into the third quarter, basically toying with Meralco the rest of the way for an 87-69 win that put Alaska in the semifinals at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

Vic Manuel tossed in eight points and Dondon Hontiveros rifled in six in the first period that had Alaska scooting away, 27-12 after the first, a lead that the Aces bloated to 47-25 after two quarters.

“I think the story of the game was our (great) start,” Alex Compton, the Alaska coach, said. “If in one half, your opponent scores just 25 points and you have a 22-point lead, you have a great chance of winning.

“These guys defended so hard,” Compton, said, speaking with Calvin Abueva beside him at the press room. “That’s how we won the game. It was because of the hard work of these guys.”

Up next for the intrepid Aces is Rain or Shine, the squad which literally took from Alaska a seat in the top two – and one of the outright Final Four slots – with a close victory in the eliminations.

And Abueva, the heart of the bruising Alaska defense, quickly reminded everyone that he doesn’t forget that easily.

“We were hurt (as a team) when Rain or Shine took that (outright semifinal slot) away from us,” Abueva, the Rookie of the Year in 2012, said. “It’s going to be a great series and we want to get back at them.”

Manuel finished with 17 points, Cyrus Baguio had 15 and Hontiveros totaled 13 as Alaska, which led this tournament practically the whole time until that 98-95 loss to the Elasto Painters on Dec. 5, played several notches higher than the Bolts.

The game was tied for the last time at 4 before the Aces put on their skates and peeled away, and the Bolts were left eating Alaska’s dust as the best that they could do was come within 13 midway in the fourth.

From 12-8, the Aces dropped a 10-0 bomb, and that proved to be all she wrote for the Bolts.

But Manuel doused cold water on that mild Meralco uprising, shooting four straight points that restored a 77-60 lead, and it proved enough to snuff the final fight out of Meralco.

San Miguel Beer, the tournament top seed, is the only side left waiting a Final Four foe.

The Beermen will face either the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters or the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings, who dispute the last berth Tuesday night also at the fabled Big Dome floor in Cubao.

Both semifinal series are scheduled as best-of-seven affairs.

John Wilson scored 16 points and Sean Anthony and Mike Cortez added 11 apiece for the Bolts, who labored hard offensively when their other guns were silenced by the porous Alaska defense.

Gary David, the national team hotshot who was the Scoring Champion the last two seasons, struggled to just eight points after making just 3-of-10 from the field.

Jared Dillinger, coach Norman Black’s starting off guard, made just two free throws and Cliff Hodge just five points in close to 28 minutes of action.