What we learned about NC State after its 0-2 showing at the Rady Children’s Invitational

NC State coach Kevin Keatts lobbied to get his team into the Rady Children’s Invitational this season to get a step up in competition. The Wolfpack, which opened the year with the likes of Colgate and William & Mary, faced No. 13 Purdue and BYU on a neutral court in San Diego.  Keatts, the Pack’s eighth-year coach, was looking to see how his team fared against better competition with the hopes of building a foundation for his team’s NCAA at-large resume. But instead of picking up a marquee win or two, the Wolfpack went winless over the Thanksgiving tournament.  Now, as NC State returns to Raleigh with a date against Texas in the ACC/SEC Challenge on Wednesday night, the Wolfpack has some work to clean its game up that both the Boilermakers and Cougars exposed over the holiday event. NC State lost 71-61 to Purdue and 72-61 to BYU over the two-day event.  “I didn’t think we were very good the entire weekend,” Keatts told reporters after the loss to the Cougars on Friday. “We did not do the little things to help win games.” “We’ve got to grow,” he later added. “I’ve got to get this team connected. It starts with me, if there’s anybody to blame, it certainly starts with me and ends with me.” Here are five things we learned from the Pack’s winless trip to San Diego.