During the 2015–16 season, the University of Iowa reached a new peak during the McCaffery era, twice defeating Michigan State during the regular season, attaining a 19–4 overall record and a No. 3 Associated Press rankings. However, the Hawkeyes lost seven of their last 10 games, including a 68–66 loss to 12th-seeded Illinois in the second round of the Big Ten Conference tournament, a team the Hawkeyes had defeated handily a month earlier and would not play in the post-season. As a result of the late-season swoon, the Hawkeyes fell to No. 25 in the final Associated Press rankings. Seeded seventh in the NCAA Division I tournament's South regional, the Hawkeyes used a buzzer-beating tip-in to defeat Temple 72–70 in overtime. The Hawkeyes lost to second-seeded Villanova in the second round, 87–68, to end the season 22–11.