Deputies looking for man accused of physically assaulting 2 women during pickup basketball game

CYPRESS, Texas (KTRK) -- A pickup basketball game took a drastic turn after a man physically assaulted two women in Cypress.

It happened in the Bridgeland community in Cypress, and now, the Harris County Precinct 5 Constable's Office is looking for the suspect.

Basketball is a big part of 18-year-old Akyra Hodges' life. She graduated from Langham Creek High School in 2022 and is off to play at Southwestern University in Austin in the fall. To stay fresh, she goes to Bridgeland court for a pickup game almost daily.

Things went downhill this day when a spectator showed up and started trash-talking.

"He was like, on the sidelines running his mouth. Disrespecting one of my friends. So one of my friends was like, 'bro, chill. It's not that serious. It's just a game'," she explained.

It didn't end there. After the man was subbed into the game, Hodges said he started calling them out of their names

"I'll never let a girl do me up. He was basically talking about me. And he was just saying how we suck, you know. We don't know how to play basketball and was all in our faces and everything, going crazy," Hodges said.

According to the Harris County Precinct 5 Constable's Office, the man got angry and started to get physical.

He pulled Hodges' hair, yanked her down on the court, got into a fight with one of her male friends, and punched another 18-year-old woman in the face as she attempted to break up the altercation.

Hodges tried to follow him in her car, but he got away in between houses on his bike. Those who witnessed the man's assault, including Hodges, her injured friend, and Hodges' parents, want the suspect held accountable for his actions.

"You're a grown man. There's no need to put your hands on kids that just turned 18. That are 18. I'm the oldest and I'm 18. Everybody else is either 18 or 17. So, you're putting your hands on all these kids for no reason. Because you came out here talking mess about us, ' Hodges said.

Hodges went on to say that as bad as that was, it could have been worse. She says a man who came with the suspect had a gun and indicated that he would use it, but thankfully, friends deescalated the situation.

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